Apple Reportedly Keeping TikTok in Store Following AG’s Reassurance

Apple has reportedly decided to keep TikTok in its App Store for at least 75 more days.

This decision came after the tech giant got a letter from Attorney General Pam Bondi telling the company it should adhere to President Donald Trump’s executive order that will extend the pause on a U.S. TikTok ban, Bloomberg News reported Sunday (April 6), citing sources familiar with the matter.

The letter apparently arrived Saturday (April 5), the same day the White House had set as a deadline for TikTok owner ByteDance to sell the video sharing app. PYMNTS has contacted Apple for comment but has not yet gotten a reply.

Trump had said he expected a deal to be struck before the deadline, with a variety of players — ranging from Amazon to groups of private equity investors — in the mix.

The new agreement being hammered out would have give new outside investors 50% of TikTok’s U.S. business in a unit that would be spun off from ByteDance, Bloomberg reported. ByteDance’s existing U.S. investors would also own around 30% of the business, reducing ByteDance’s stake to just under 20%.

Then came the latest round of U.S. tariffs on overseas products, including 54% duties on Chinese imports, leading ByteDance to back away.

Trump said on his Truth Social platform on Friday that the deal “requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed,” leading him to authorize the 75-day extension.

Apple had restored TikTok in February after Bondi sent a similar letter offering the same reassurances. That followed a ban that went into effect earlier in the year, stemming from a law passed due to national-security-related concerns about TikTok’s Chinese ownership.

Trump had initially supported banning TikTok — it was something he pushed for during his first presidency — but reversed his position last year, lobbying for a solution even after the Supreme Court ruled against ByteDance in trying to quash the ban.

Meanwhile, PYMNTS wrote last week about Amazon’s push to become TikTok’s new owner, arguing something that would give the eCommerce giant a powerful tool for influencing consumer behavior, especially among younger demographics.

“Moreover, such an acquisition could allow Amazon to integrate TikTok’s influential advertising ecosystem into its own retail infrastructure, providing a seamless link between content discovery and direct purchasing,” the report added. 

“While the deal remains speculative, it highlights Amazon’s willingness to pursue unconventional strategies to remain at the forefront of consumer engagement.”

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