Microsoft and Bytedance Put TikTok Talks on Hold After Trump Signals Opposition
August 01 2020 - 4:40PM
Dow Jones News
By Cara Lombardo and Georgia Wells
Microsoft Corp. has paused negotiations to buy the U.S.
operations of the video-sharing app TikTok after President Trump
said late Friday he opposes the deal, according to people familiar
with the matter.
The president's statements spurred TikTok to make additional
concessions, including agreeing to add as many as 10,000 jobs in
the U.S. over the next three years, but it isn't clear if those
will alter Mr. Trump's stance, one of the people said.
The software giant was in advanced talks with TikTok parent
Bytedance Ltd., with momentum toward a deal that they believed met
the White House goal for the popular app to get bought by a U.S.
company, the people said. Those plans were interrupted when Mr.
Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he preferred to ban the
app and wouldn't support a sale.
Before Mr. Trump's remarks, the two sides believed the broad
strokes of a deal could be in place by Monday, the people said.
The companies were caught off guard by the president's comments,
said one person familiar with the matter. Another person said the
White House has been involved in the discussions for weeks and made
it clear from the outset that the desired outcome was for TikTok to
be "American owned."
In a statement Saturday, a White House spokesperson said, "The
administration has very serious national security concerns over
TikTok. We continue to evaluate future policy."
The deal talks aren't believed to be dead, but rather the two
companies are trying to get clarity on where the White House stands
and whether it is planning a separate action that would make it
difficult for TikTok to operate in the U.S., the people said.
Mr. Trump said that he preferred to ban the app entirely.
"As far as TikTok is concerned we're banning them from the
United States, " he said. "Well, I have that authority."
Write to Cara Lombardo at cara.lombardo@wsj.com and Georgia
Wells at Georgia.Wells@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 01, 2020 16:25 ET (20:25 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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