US President Donald Trump said on Saturday (Jan 25) that he was in talks with multiple people over buying TikTok and would likely have a decision on the popular app’s future in the next 30 days.
“I have spoken to many people about TikTok and there is great interest in TikTok,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One during a flight to Florida. Earlier in the day, Reuters reported two sources with knowledge of the discussions said Trump’s administration is working on a plan to save TikTok that involves tapping software company Oracle and a group of outside investors to effectively take control of the app’s operations.
Under the deal being negotiated by the White House, TikTok’s China-based owner, ByteDance, would retain a stake in the company, but data collection and software updates would be overseen by Oracle, which already provides the foundation of TikTok’s Web infrastructure, one of the sources told Reuters.
However, in his comments to reporters on the flight, Trump said he had not spoken to Oracle’s Larry Ellison about buying the app.
Asked if he was putting together a deal with Oracle and other investors to save TikTok, Trump said: “No, not with Oracle. Numerous people are talking to me, very substantial people, about buying it and I will make that decision probably over the next 30 days. Congress has given 90 days. If we can save TikTok, I think it would be a good thing.”
The sources did say the terms of any potential deal with Oracle were fluid and likely to change. One source said the full scope of the discussions was not yet set and could include the US operations as well as other regions.
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National Public Radio (NPR) on Saturday reported the deal talks for TikTok’s global operations, citing two sources with knowledge of the negotiations. Oracle had no immediate comment. The deal being negotiated anticipates participation from some of ByteDance’s current US investors, according to the sources. Jeff Yass’s Susquehanna International Group, General Atlantic, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and Sequoia Capital are among ByteDance’s US backers.
Representatives for TikTok, ByteDance investors General Atlantic, KKR, Sequoia and Susquehanna could not immediately be reached for comment.
Others vying to acquire TikTok, including the investor group led by billionaire Frank McCourt and another involving Jimmy Donaldson, better known as the YouTube star Mr. Beast, are not part of the Oracle negotiation, one of the sources said.
Oracle responsible
Under the terms of the deal, Oracle would be responsible for addressing national security issues. TikTok initially struck a deal with Oracle in 2022 to store US users’ information to alleviate Washington’s worries about Chinese government interference.
TikTok’s management would remain in place, to operate the short video app, according to one of the sources. The app, which is used by 170 million Americans, was taken offline temporarily for users shortly before a law that said it must be sold by ByteDance on national security grounds, or be banned, took effect on Jan 19. Trump, after taking office a day later, signed an executive order seeking to delay by 75 days the enforcement of the law that was put in place after US officials warned that under ByteDance, there was a risk of Americans’ data being misused.
Officials from Oracle and the White House held a meeting on Friday about a potential deal, and another meeting has been scheduled for next week, NPR reported.
Oracle was interested in a TikTok stake “in the tens of billions”, but the rest of the deal is in flux, the NPR report cited the source as saying.
Trump has said he “would like the United States to have a 50 per cent ownership position in a joint venture” in TikTok.
NPR cited another source as saying that appeasing Congress is seen as a key hurdle by the White House. Free speech advocates have opposed TikTok’s ban under a law passed by the US Congress and signed by former President Joe Biden.
The company has said US officials have misstated its ties to China, arguing its content recommendation engine and user data are stored in the United States on cloud servers operated by Oracle while content moderation decisions that affect American users are also made in the US. REUTERS
