Mohith AgadiMicrosoft’s offer to buy TikTok’s US activities has been rejected by ByteDance, the platform’s Chinese owner, the US IT giant announced Sunday evening. “We are confident that our proposal would have been good for TikTok users while protecting national security interests,” Microsoft said.
The Microsoft Corp. had indicated in early August its interest in TikTok, under the threat of a ban in the United States. President Donald Trump, who has accused the popular social network of spying for China’s benefit without proof for months, has signed executive orders to force ByteDance to quickly sell TikTok’s activities on American soil. If a buyback agreement is not reached before September 20, the platform will have to close in the United States. The application for its part filed a complaint against the US government to contest this measure.
“We would have made significant changes to ensure that the service meets the highest standards for security, privacy, safety, and the fight against disinformation,” said Microsoft. At the end of August, the retail mammoth, Walmart had confirmed that it had joined forces with Microsoft in negotiations to acquire the platform for sharing short videos, generally humorous or musical. However, this partnership between the two American giants was not enough.
According to several American media, the IT group Oracle, whose name has circulated as one of the possible buyers, now has the way open for the acquisition of the American activities of TikTok. Oracle and TikTok did not immediately confirm.
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Zainab Asif
