Regarding the Acquisition of Musical.ly by ByteDance Ltd.
Record date: 2020-08-19
( printed page 51297) Order of August 14, 2020 Regarding the Acquisition of Musical.ly by ByteDance Ltd. By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended (section 721), 50 U.S.C. 4565 , it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1 . Findings. (a) There is credible evidence that leads me to believe that ByteDance Ltd., an exempted company with limited liability incorporated under the laws of the
What this record contains
- Federal Register document
- 2020-18360
- Publication date
- 2020-08-19
- Citation
- 85 FR 51297
- Issuing office
- Executive Office of the President
Official record excerpt
( printed page 51297) Order of August 14, 2020 Regarding the Acquisition of Musical.ly by ByteDance Ltd. By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended (section 721), 50 U.S.C. 4565 , it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1 . Findings. (a) There is credible evidence that leads me to believe that ByteDance Ltd., an exempted company with limited liability incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands (“ByteDance”), through acquiring all interests in musical.ly, an exempted company with limited liability incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands (“Musical.ly”), might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States. As a result of the acquisition, ByteDance merged its TikTok application with Musical.ly's social media application and created a single integrated social media application; and (b) Provisions of law, other than section 721 and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act ( 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq. ), do not, in my judgment, provide adequate and appropriate authority for me to protect the national security in this matter. Sec. 2 . Actions Ordered and Authorized. On the basis of the findings set forth in section 1 of this order, considering the factors described in subsection (f) of section 721, as appropriate, and pursuant to my authority under applicable law, including section 721, I hereby order that: (a) The transaction resulting in the acquisition by ByteDance of Musical.ly, to the extent that Musical.ly or any of its assets is used in furtherance or support of, or relating to, Musical.ly's activities in interstate commerce in the United States (“Musical.ly in the United States”), is hereby prohibited, and ownership by ByteDance of any interest in Musical.ly in the United States, whether effected directly or indirectly through ByteDance, or through ByteDance's subsidiaries, affiliates, or Chinese shareholders, is also prohibited. (b) In order to effectuate this order, not later than 90 days after the date of this order, unless such date is extended for a period not to exceed 30 days, on such written conditions as the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) may impose, ByteDance, its subsidiaries, affiliates, and Chinese shareholders, shall divest all interests and rights in: (i) any tangible or intangible assets or property, wherever located, used to enable or support ByteDance's operation of the TikTok application in the United States, as determined by the Committee; and (ii) any data obtained or derived from TikTok application or Musical.ly application users in the United States. Immediately upon divestment, ByteDance shall certify in writing to CFIUS that all steps necessary to fully and permanently effectuate the actions required under sections 2(a) and 2(b) have been completed. (c) Immediately upon divestment, ByteDance shall certify in writing to CFIUS that it has destroyed all data that it is required to divest pursuant to section 2(b)(ii), as well as all copies of such data wherever located, and CFIUS is authorized to require auditing of ByteDance on terms it deems appropriate in order to ensure that such destruction of data is complete. (d) ByteDance shall not complete a sale or transfer under section 2(b) to any third party: ( printed page 51298) (i) until ByteDance notifies CFIUS in writing of the intended recipient or buyer; and (ii) unless 10 business days have passed from the notification in section 2(d)(i) and CFIUS has not issued an objection to ByteDance. Among the factors CFIUS may consider in reviewing the proposed sale or transfer are whether the buyer or transferee: is a U.S. citizen or is owned by U.S. citizens; has or has had a direct or indirect contractual, financial, familial, employment, or other close and continuous relationship with ByteDance, or its officers, employees, or shareholders; and can demonstrate a willingness and ability to support compliance with this order. In addition, CFIUS may consider whether the proposed sale or transfer would threaten to impair the national security of the United States or undermine the purpose of this order, and whether the sale effectuates, to CFIUS's satisfaction and in its discretion, a complete divestment of all tangible or intangible assets or property,
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