Currently working on contingency plans, due to the possibility of a complete ban in the US against its existence within the country, TikTok and parent company ByteDance may have to sell this prized asset to maintain its future of operations and revenue potential.

 According to Bloomberg:

"TikTok's leadership is considering a move to break off from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, in a bid to ease national security concerns. A divestiture that may include selling the company or taking it public is last on the list, but only if the existing proposal presented to national security officials is rejected, people close to the matter say."

That's almost the same path what TikTok was almost compelled into way back in 2020 when then President Donald Trump made a call for the app to be sold into US ownership, or face a full ban.

The Biden Administration eventually abandoned those plans, which, at one stage, had Microsoft and Oracle as the front runners to purchase the app. But now, amid growing concerns from cybersecurity experts, and increasing tensions with the Chinese government, The White House may once again be close to pushing TikTok into drastic action.

Though even that may not be a practicable route. The Chinese Government would, at the very least, be able to exert some authority over say such action, and would have to sanction the selling off – which, given its various statements on the moves taken against TikTok thus far, it may not wish to do.

Last month, while reacting to the increased US bans of TikTok on its government-owned devices, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning was quoted saying that:

"The [US government] has overextended the concept of national security and abused state power to suppress other countries' companies. How unsure of itself can the US, the world's top superpower, be to fear a young person's favorite app to such a degree?

This has been a common refrain from the CCP, that the US should not have the power to simply cancel a Chinese-owned app without clear reason for such.

It appears that, for the same reason - the CCP would not be amused by a forced sell-off of one of its assets - TikTok and ByteDance going down this route would still not be possible without the current process.

Really, the next stage for the app is to be seen with the appearance of TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew before the US House Energy and Commerce Committee on March 23rd where Chew will be questioned about the app, and the capacity for data sharing with Chinese-based groups.
If Chew's answers fail to win over US senators, then you can bet that the calls for a TikTok ban will get even louder, while another spy balloon-type incident could be all that's needed to force President Biden's hand – and Biden does now have the power to ban the app, if he sees fit.

It seems likely that a compromise, of some kind, will need to be met, but the tense atmosphere around US-China relations doesn’t bode well for the app, as it currently stands.

I would still bet on TikTok continuing on in some form, but as noted, there are various elements at play that could indeed see it gone before the year is out.