TikTok reaches deal for new US joint venture to avoid American ban

WASHINGTON, Jan 22 (Reuters) – TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, finalized a deal ​on Thursday to set up ‌a majority American-owned joint venture company to ‌avoid a U.S. ban on the popular social media app used by more than 200 million Americans.

The deal ⁠is a ‌milestone for the short video app after years of battles ‍that began in August 2020, when President Donald Trump first tried unsuccessfully to ban ​the app over national security ‌concerns.

TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC will secure U.S. user data, apps and the algorithm through data privacy and cybersecurity measures, the company said.

The agreement ⁠provides for American ​and global investors, including ​cloud computing giant Oracle, private equity group Silver Lake and ‍Abu Dhabi-based ⁠MGX, to hold a stake of 80.1% in the new joint ⁠venture, while ByteDance will retain 19.9%.

(Reporting by ‌David Shepardson in Washington; Editing ‌by Clarence Fernandez)