Tech giant Microsoft has confirmed talks with the Chinese company Bytedance the popular App TikTok.
MICROSOFT said on Sunday the tech company is moving forward with talks to buy TikTok after receiving the go-ahead from President Donald Trump.
Trump, who said on Friday he was banning TikTok, spoke with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella “to explore a purchase” of the app in the US, the company said.
President Donald Trump gave Microsoft the go-ahead to discuss buying TikTok from Chinese company ByteDance
In a statement, Microsoft said it “fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President’s concerns.
“It is committed to acquiring TikTok subject to a complete security review and providing proper economic benefits to the United States, including the United States Treasury.”
The company said it plans to “move quickly to pursue discussions with TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, in a matter of weeks.”
The discussions will conclude by September 15, according to Microsoft.
Microsoft said they’re planning to ‘move quickly’ to talk with ByteDance ‘in a matter of weeks’.
“During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States Government, including with the President.”
Microsoft and ByteDance — which is based in Beijing — have “provided notice of their intent” to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US “to explore a preliminary proposal that would involve a purchase of the TikTok service in the United States.”
That purchase would also include TikTok in “Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and would result in Microsoft owning and operating TikTok in these markets.
“This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections.
TikTok lets users create and share short videos with music and camera effects.
It is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance, founded by the entrepreneur Zhang Yiming.
The $75billion conglomerate acquired the Musical.ly app in 2017 and merged it with TikTok, bringing millions of new users.
It is the world’s most downloaded iPhone app — with nearly 800 million downloads across the globe, according to data from mobile research firm Sensor Tower.
Facebook has taken notice of TikTok’s rising popularity, and launched a competitor app called Lasso in November last year.
“The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries.
“Among other measures, Microsoft would ensure that all private data of TikTok’s American users is transferred to and remains in the United States.”
TikTok has denied allegations that it shares user data with the Chinese government
Reuters reported on Sunday night that Trump agreed to give ByteDance 45 days to negotiate a sale of the app to Microsoft, or by September 15.
On Friday, Trump told reporters: “As far as TikTok is concerned, we’re banning them from the United States.”
He said he could use emergency economic powers or an executive order to enforce the action.
“I have that authority,” he said aboard the presidential plane.
Trump said he planned to ban TikTok after it was reported that Microsoft was looking into buying the app.
It wasn’t immediately clear what changed his mind about a sale to Microsoft.
TikTok is a Chinese-owned video app that’s become popular among Americans in the last two years or so.
Users on the app create, watch, and engage with videos that range from fun dance trends to beekeepers rescuing honeybees.
It was the world’s second most downloaded app in the third quarter of 2019, with an estimated 176 million downloads.
TikTok has said it has tens of millions of US users and hundreds of millions of users worldwide[/caption]
TikTok has said it has tens of millions of US users and hundreds of millions of users worldwide.
But while it’s considered fun by users, US lawmakers have raised intelligence, national security, and privacy concerns about the company’s ownership.
TikTok has denied allegations that it shares user data with the Chinese government.
On Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Trump would take action on a “broad array of national security risks” within the coming days.
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin also said on Sunday that “we are not keeping TikTok in its current form.”
Trump said on Friday he planned to entirely ban TikTok in the US by way of executive action
TikTok recently backed away from making the United Kingdom its global headquarters amid rising tensions between Britain and China.
Earlier in the week, Trump had warned he was considering banning TikTok from the country, but said his administration was “looking at a lot of alternatives with respect to TikTok.”
