JAKARTA - Microsoft is again mentioned as one of the companies in the United States (US) interested in acquiring TikTok. This step is considered to be able to help the Chinese video sharing application avoid the potential ban which is scheduled to take effect in April 2024.

Reporting fromAPTasa January 28, former US President Donald Trump revealed that apart from Microsoft, several other companies also showed similar interest. However, he did not specify the list of parties involved.

"I love competition in the offerings because it resulted in the best deal," Trump said.

Until now, neither Microsoft nor TikTok have commented on the news.

During his reign, Trump extended the deadline for TikTok to look for new owners from January 19, 2024 to April 4, 2024, providing additional 75 days.

Trump also wants TikTok buyers to give the US government 50% shares. However, details regarding this scheme are still unclear, including whether the US government will take direct control of the app.

Sources familiar with this situation state that artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI has submitted a proposal to ByteDance, the parent of TikTok based in China.

Apart from Perplexity AI, a number of other figures have also shown interest in the acquisition of TikTok in the US. Among them are billionaire Frank McCort and former Finance Minister Steven Mnuchin. Trump even claimed to have spoken directly with various parties regarding the possible acquisition.

Although the bipartisan law related to TikTok was passed in the era of President Joe Biden in April 2024, ByteDance previously confirmed that it had no plans to sell TikTok. The company even opposed this rule by legal means.

However, in recent developments, the Chinese government is starting to soften over the potential for TikTok divestment. General Atlantic Bill Ford chairman, who is also a member of the ByteDance board, stated that the company is open to cooperating with the US and Chinese governments to find solutions that allow TikTok to continue operating in the US.

National security issues continue to be a major issue in discussions related to TikTok. TikTok's ownership by ByteDance, a Chinese company, raises concerns over the potential data manipulation of more than 170 million TikTok users in the US.

Trump, yang sebelumnya mendukung pelarangan TikTok, belakangan mengubah pandangannya. Ia menilai platform tersebut memiliki potensi untuk membantunya menarik perhatian pemilih muda dalam pemilu presiden terakhir.

Microsoft sebelumnya pernah bermitra dengan Walmart untuk mengajukan tawaran akuisisi TikTok pada periode pertama pemerintahan Trump.

Despite the failure of these efforts, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella called the experience one of the strangest things in his career.


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