Sale or ban in 45 days: Trump puts Tiktok pistol on his chest

US President Trump is certain: The Tiktok video app threatens US national security. It will therefore be banned in 45 days – unless a US company takes over the business there. A second app is also on the hit list.

US President Donald Trump bans US citizens from doing business with the owners of the popular Chinese video app Tiktok. With the order, which is due to take effect in 45 days, Trump is reinforcing his threat to force the sale of the Chinese app to an American company.

Trump sees the app as a "threat" to national security. The app collects huge amounts of data from its users and could enable the Chinese Communist Party to spy on Americans, he said in the evening (local time).

The American software giant Microsoft has positioned itself after massive political pressure recently from the White House to take over the US video app business. The company plans to negotiate a deal with private Chinese owner Bytedance by mid-September.

With the order, Trump seems to want to force the sale. Should a US company take over Tiktok's business in the United States, the app should continue to have a future there. The White House cited reports that the app had been downloaded 175 million times in the US.

Trump also issued a ban on doing business with the Chinese social media app WeChat or its owners. The ban will also come into force in 45 days, the White House said. WeChat also collect huge amounts of user data and represent a "threat" to national security, it said. The order is likely to lead to a ban on the app in the USA. The app operated by Tencent Holdings is extremely popular and widely used in China. It offers users the services of a social network as well as messenger services and a popular payment service.

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