TikTok’s corporate masters Byte Dance have been consistently saying that TikTok isn’t for sale. But according to this story, a deal may be in the works:
The Trump 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 global operations, according to two people with direct knowledge of the talks.
Under the deal now being negotiated by the White House, TikTok’s China-based owner ByteDance would retain a minority stake in the company, but the app’s algorithm, data collection and software updates will be overseen by Oracle, which already provides the foundation of TikTok’s web infrastructure.
That would effectively mean American investors would own a majority stake in TikTok, but the terms of the deal could change and are still being hammered out.
“The goal is for Oracle to effectively monitor and provide oversight with what is going on with TikTok,” said the person directly involved in the talks, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the deliberations. “ByteDance wouldn’t completely go away, but it would minimize Chinese ownership.”
NPR has agreed not to name the sources, who are not authorized to speak publicly about the confidential talks.
Other potential investors who are engaged in the talks include Microsoft.
If any of this sounds familiar, it should. The last time Donald Trump was president, he tried to engineer a deal involving Oracle and WalMart among others. But the deal fell apart. Microsoft was also said to be interested in buying TikTok. But that deal went nowhere at least twice. So, will it happen this time? I have no clue. But we have less than 75 days to see what happens as that’s how long the TikTok executive lasts.
A Deal Involving Oracle And Microsoft To Buy TikTok Is Allegedly On The Table
Posted in Commentary with tags Microsoft, Oracle, TikTok on January 26, 2025 by itnerdTikTok’s corporate masters Byte Dance have been consistently saying that TikTok isn’t for sale. But according to this story, a deal may be in the works:
The Trump 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 global operations, according to two people with direct knowledge of the talks.
Under the deal now being negotiated by the White House, TikTok’s China-based owner ByteDance would retain a minority stake in the company, but the app’s algorithm, data collection and software updates will be overseen by Oracle, which already provides the foundation of TikTok’s web infrastructure.
That would effectively mean American investors would own a majority stake in TikTok, but the terms of the deal could change and are still being hammered out.
“The goal is for Oracle to effectively monitor and provide oversight with what is going on with TikTok,” said the person directly involved in the talks, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the deliberations. “ByteDance wouldn’t completely go away, but it would minimize Chinese ownership.”
NPR has agreed not to name the sources, who are not authorized to speak publicly about the confidential talks.
Other potential investors who are engaged in the talks include Microsoft.
If any of this sounds familiar, it should. The last time Donald Trump was president, he tried to engineer a deal involving Oracle and WalMart among others. But the deal fell apart. Microsoft was also said to be interested in buying TikTok. But that deal went nowhere at least twice. So, will it happen this time? I have no clue. But we have less than 75 days to see what happens as that’s how long the TikTok executive lasts.
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