Project Liberty makes offer to TikTok. Here's what to know about the potential buyer.
As the deadline for a potential TikTok ban in the U.S. approaches, billionaire and former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt 's Project Liberty confirmed making a formal offer to Bytedance, the platform's Chinese parent company, to buy the social media giant's American assets.
The offer, announced Thursday by Project Liberty, comes ahead of a Jan. 19 deadline for ByteDance to sell the platform or face a ban on national security grounds.
Project Liberty's President Tomicah Tillemann said in a statement that the organization would not publicly disclose the bid amount. However, the group previously said it had secured $20 billion in verbal commitments from a group of investors ready to bid for TikTok.
Is TikTok getting banned? Why the Supreme Court is likely to side against 170 million users
Last year, President Joe Biden signed a law banning the foreign-owned app unless it sells its U.S. assets. The legislation received overwhelming bipartisan support from lawmakers, who expressed concerns over the Chinese government's potential to spy on more than the 170 million Americans who use TikTok and to conduct covert influence operations.
The social media giant has repeatedly stated it does not pose a security threat and the proposed ban violates free speech protections under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.
On Friday, the Supreme Court heard arguments from the U.S. government and TikTok about the impending ban, which President-elect Donald Trump has recently said he does not support.
In late December, Trump urged the court to put a hold on the Jan. 19 deadline to give his incoming administration "the opportunity to pursue a political resolution of the questions at issue in the case."
TikTok did not immediately respond for comment about the bid when contacted by USA TODAY.
What would Project Liberty be buying?
If Project Liberty acquired TikTok, it would only be the U.S. portion of the platform and would not include TikTok's algorithm, which China sees as its intellectual property, McCourt told CBS last month.
The non-profit plans to migrate TikTok's user base to an American-built digital infrastructure designed to put people back in charge of their data, according to a statement released on Thursday.
Who is this potential buyer, Project Liberty?
In 2021, McCourt invested $100 million to establish Project Liberty, an initiative aimed at decentralizing the internet, Anna Feagan, McCourt Global's communications director, told USA TODAY. In 2023, he increased his investment to $500 million.
"The internet is broken and it's urgent that we fix it," in a statement released by McCourt on the Project Liberty website . "The institutions and ideals we cherish most are being destroyed for the use of free apps that steal our personal data and digital identities."
While TikTok has denied they would consider selling the app, McCourt thinks the parent company would be more open to discussions if and when the Supreme Court shuts down their U.S. operation, according to Reuters.
To date, McCourt and his team have had " preliminary conversations " with members of the incoming administration with the hopes of finding a resolution before the app is shut down.
"By keeping the platform alive without relying on the current TikTok algorithm and avoiding a ban, millions of Americans can continue to enjoy the platform. We look forward to working with ByteDance, President-elect Trump, and the incoming administration to get this deal done," McCourt said.
USA TODAY's Jessica Guynn, Rachel Looker, Rebecca Morin, Ken Tran, Anthony Robledo and Reuters contributed to the reporting of this story.
Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Follow her on X and Instagram @gretalcross. Story idea? Email her at gcross@usatoday.com .
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Could a TikTok sale happen? Project Liberty makes offer as ban looms
