A deal was very close to be reached, report reveals

Aug 2, 2020 05:37 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft is in pole-position to take over Internet phenomenon TikTok but the negotiations have been suspended after United States President Donald Trump reiterated that he wants the app to be banned no matter what.

TikTok’s parent company ByteDance has repeatedly been criticized by Trump for its alleged ties with the Chinese government. The President threatened to ban the application in the United States entirely, suggesting that the only thing that would save it is American ownership.

Microsoft’s talks with ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming started a few weeks ago, according to a report from the WSJ, especially as the Chinese firm is looking into ways to avoid a possible ban. Microsoft, however, was surprised by the statements of President Trump, who said during the weekend that a ban is still on the table.

“As far as TikTok is concerned we’re banning them from the United States,” he said. “Well, I have that authority.”

Microsoft’s Facebook competitor According to the report, the talks have been suspended until the White House clarifies its position regarding the app. Microsoft wants to know if a ban is still possible if TikTok ends up becoming one of its assets or President Trump is thinking of banning the app in the United States only if it remains under Chinese ownership.

A White House spokesperson told the cited source that the administration still has serious security concerns over TikTok but refused to comment on the possible deal with Microsoft.

“The administration has very serious national security concerns over TikTok. We continue to evaluate future policy,” the spokesperson said.

By the looks of things, Microsoft wants TikTok, which would be the company’s own rival to Facebook, to operate independently at first, all as part of a strategy that’s currently used for LinkedIn too. Microsoft would probably spend billions on TikTok, but for now, the deal that at one point seemed imminent is waiting for additional clarification from the White House.