Microsoft confirms it wants to buy TikTok

TikTok is an interesting case. This short-video app has over 1 billion users but this year it has landed itself in hot water as more and more evidence emerged that it's a big privacy risk. India and Australia have already banned it in an effort to protect their citizens against Chinese spying and US president Trump is considering a similar measure.

One thing that could save the Chinese app in the West is a takeover. Last week, rumors emerged that Microsoft has been in talks with ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, about an acquisition. A valuation of up to $50 billion is floating around, which would make it rank among the biggest tech acquisitions ever. It's a lot of money but with over $130 billion in cash reserves Microsoft is one of the few tech companies that can acquire TikTok.

The Register reports Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has been on the phone with president Trump to discuss a potential deal. Microsoft says that if it buys TikTok, it will perform a complete security review and relocate user data to the appropriate country.

Now Microsoft has used its official corporate blog to reveal that “Following a conversation between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and President Donald J. Trump, Microsoft is prepared to continue discussions to explore a purchase of TikTok in the United States.” And in Canada, New Zealand and Australia, too.

“Microsoft will move quickly to pursue discussions with TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, in a matter of weeks, and in any event completing these discussions no later than September 15, 2020. During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States Government, including with the President.”

According to the latest news reports, Trump is now in favor of a US-based acquisition of TikTok if the US Treasury gets a "substantial portion" of the purchase price.