Online Reporter
US President Donald Trump said he would be open to billionaire supporter Elon Musk or Oracle Corp Chairman Larry Ellison purchasing social video app TikTok as part of a joint venture with the US government.
“I have the right to make a deal,” Trump said at an event alongside Ellison at the White House on Tuesday. “So what I’m thinking about saying to somebody is buy it and give half to the United States of America, half, and we’ll give you the permit, and they’ll have a great partner.”
While TikTok temporarily went offline over the weekend, Trump signed an executive order on January 20 — his first day in office to extend the deadline for a sale by 75 days. While it’s not clear that Trump has the authority to extend the deadline, it may not ultimately matter.
ByteDance Ltd. has publicly refused to sell TikTok, though prospective buyers hope the Supreme Court’s ruling in support of a national security law forcing the company to either sell or shutter the service in the US, along with the temporary shut down, could push it to reconsider.
“You have an asset that has no value or has a trillion-dollar value,” Trump said. “It all depends on whether or not the United States gives the permit.”
China’s foreign and commerce ministries didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on whether Beijing would allow the American government to own part of TikTok.
Its Foreign Ministry on Monday said that it’s up to individual companies to make decisions about their operations and acquisitions, and the hope was that “the US can listen to rational voices and provide an open, fair, just and non-discriminatory environment.” — Bloomberg.
