TikTok Will Not Be Banned This Week

The popular social media app TikTok has been facing the possibility of a ban in the United States for several months. But as the latest deadline approaches, it sounds like the app will survive again, at least for another 90 days.

TikTok originally faced the possibility of a ban on the day that United States President Donald Trump officially took office, thanks to a bipartisan law that would effectively outlaw the social media app in the United States.

In fact, the app briefly ceased operations in the United States before the Trump administration enacted a 90-day pause, allowing the app to move toward divesting from its China-based parent company, ByteDance

When no deal was reached in 90 days, Trump extended that pause in April. Now, as the new deadline approaches this week with no deal in place, the White House has announced that the pause has been extended again.

"As he has said many times, President Trump does not want TikTok to go dark. This extension will last 90 days, which the Administration will spend working to ensure this deal is closed so that the American people can continue to use TikTok with the assurance that their data is safe and secure," Leavitt said in a statement via CBS News.

The White House orders have directed the Justice Department not to take action or enforce penalties against companies like Apple and Google for failure to remove the app from their platforms.

Trump spoke on the status of a deal back in May, admitting that "we'll probably have to get China's approval."

"China's never easy," he said at the time. "I'd like to save TikTok. I mean, TikTok was very good to me."

On Tuesday, however, Mr. Trump expressed confidence that Chinese President Xi Jinping would ultimately sign off on a deal when it is reached.

"I think President Xi will ultimately approve it," Trump said.

While there are still a lot of unknowns regarding the long-term future of TikTok, it will not face a ban this week.