TikTok Developing New U.S. App Version Ahead of Expected Sale, Report Says

TikTok is reportedly building a new version of its app for U.S. users in anticipation of a planned sale to a group of investors, according to a report by The Information on Sunday citing unnamed sources.

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Summary:

• New U.S. App Launch:
  TikTok aims to launch the new app on U.S. app stores by September 5. Users will eventually need to download this new version to continue accessing the service, although the current app is expected to function until March next year. This timeline may be subject to change.

• Background on Sale:
  The move comes amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement last Friday that talks with China regarding a possible TikTok deal would begin early this week. Trump stated the U.S. “pretty much” has a deal in place for the sale of TikTok’s U.S. operations.

• Deadline Extension:
  Trump had extended ByteDance’s deadline to divest TikTok’s U.S. assets to September 17. Earlier efforts to spin off TikTok’s U.S. operations into a U.S.-based company majority-owned by American investors stalled after China expressed disapproval, partly due to escalating U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods.

• Approval Needed:
  Trump acknowledged that any deal would likely require approval from China. TikTok and ByteDance have not commented on the report, and Reuters could not independently verify the information.