Oracle 'very close' to deal on TikTok: Trump
Last updated on: 16 September,2020 08:55 am
The TikTok saga has seen several twists, with Microsoft seen initially as the suitor.
WASHINGTON (AFP) - Silicon Valley tech giant Oracle is "very close" to sealing a deal to become the US partner to Chinese-owned video app TikTok to avert a ban in the United States, President Donald Trump said Tuesday.
Trump’s comments came a day after US officials confirmed that Oracle was set to make a deal with TikTok parent ByteDance ahead of a deadline set by the US president, who has called the app a national security threat.
"I heard they’re very close to a deal," Trump told reporters, adding that "we’re going to make a decision pretty soon" on whether to approve the tie-up, which would make Oracle a "trusted technology provider" for TikTok.
Details of the deal remained unclear. But the Financial Times reported that ByteDance was to place TikTok’s global business in a new US-headquartered company with Oracle investing as a minority shareholder along with other US investors.
CNBC reported the Trump administration could approve the deal later Tuesday.
The TikTok saga has seen several twists, with Microsoft seen initially as the suitor before its bid was rejected.
Chinese authorities have said they would not allow ByteDance to sell the algorithms used by TikTok which are believed to hold much of the value for the popular social platform.