Particle.news
Download on the App Store
109 ARTICLES
·
yesterday

TikTok, ByteDance Sign Deal to Shift U.S. Control to Oracle-Led Joint Venture

The binding pact moves U.S. control into a new venture to satisfy a sell-or-ban law, with closing targeted for Jan. 22.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 07: A 7-year-old teenage boy and a 11-year-old teenage girl look at their iPad screen with TikTok logo is displayed on December 07, 2025 in Sydney, Australia. The Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 requires social media platforms, including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Snapchat, X, Reddit, Threads, Twitch, and Kick to implement age-verification systems and take reasonable steps to prevent account creation by users under 16, with non-compliant platforms facing penalties of up to A$50 million. (Photo by George Chan/Getty Images)
Image
FILE - In this July 21, 2020 file photo, a man opens social media app 'TikTok' on his cell phone, in Islamabad, Pakistan. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed, File)
Image

Overview

  • TikTok and ByteDance signed binding agreements to form TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, transferring control of U.S. operations to investors led by Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX.
  • Ownership will see Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX at 15% each, affiliates of existing ByteDance investors at about 30.1%, and ByteDance retaining a 19.9% minority stake.
  • The U.S. venture will run data protection, algorithm security, content moderation and software assurance, retraining the recommendation system on U.S. data under a seven-member majority-American board.
  • Oracle will serve as the trusted security partner auditing compliance with national security terms once the transaction completes.
  • The deal is expected to close on Jan. 22, 2026, pending remaining implementation steps and regulatory approvals, including in China, with unresolved questions about how the algorithm and other ties to ByteDance will be separated or licensed.