Bid for TikTok

 TikTok’s fate has been up in the air ever since President Donald Trump issued an executive order
demanding that its parent company ByteDance either sell or spin off the US portions of the
company, citing national security concerns from the China-based company.

 Under stipulations set by the White House to alleviate national security concerns, ByteDance would
need to sell TikTok’s U.S. operations to reduce the app’s Chinese ownership. It would also have to
sell to one or more companies that have a technology services provider, in part to transfer TikTok’s
American user data over to U.S. servers. Both Microsoft and Oracle satisfy those requirements.

 A deal with Microsoft and Walmart could draw on Walmart’s digital sales background to turn
TikTok into a kind of e-commerce app for both creators and users. The news caused Walmart’s
stock to jump over 7% in the last two days.

 The retailer’s involvement should come as no surprise, given that one of Walmart’s top priorities is
to build its digital marketplace and grow its advertising, especially as it tries to compete with e-
commerce giant Amazon.

 A deal with Oracle, the enterprise software company, would be more of a data play. Oracle could
use TikTok’s data about social interactions to benefit its cloud, data and advertising businesses.

 This month, President Trump signed an executive order mandating that TikTok sell its U.S.
operations by mid-September or cease transactions within the country.

 The emergence of the two bids follows the resignation late on Wednesday of TikTok’s chief
executive, Kevin Mayer. Mr. Mayer, a former Disney executive who had announced he was joining
TikTok in May, said he was resigning because he had signed on for a global role, not to run a
carved-up version of the company. In a note to employees, he also indicated that a deal for TikTok
might be close.

 Additionally, Bloomberg has reported that TikTok-rival Triller and Centricus (a London-based
global investment firm) are the latest suitors looking to buy TikTok’s US business with a $20
billion bid, joining Oracle and a recently combined Microsoft / Walmart effort.

References:https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/28/21406094/triller-centricus-tiktok-us-business-
acquisition-trump-bytedance

https://www.forbes.com/sites/sergeiklebnikov/2020/08/28/heres-why-a-tiktok-deal-makes-sense-for-
walmart/#107394474e79