.jpg){kind=avatar}
Just a week after Microsoft (MSFT) were omitted from the Congress hearing into 'big tech', it is reported - if you believe the press - that Donald Trump was on the phone to Satya Nadella (MSFT CEO) to discuss their acquisition of Chinese owned TikTok's (ByteDance) US operations... 'by Sept 15th'.
Since the heightened tensions between the US and China - and a looming election - the Trump administration has not been shy about targeting Chinese tech firms they believe are a threat to national security (see Huawei etc.).
A glance at MSFT's major acquistions before Nadella took the helm (Nokia, Skype, aQuantive etc.) is not pretty, whilst under his leadership it's more impressive: LinkedIn, Github and Mojang (maker of Minecraft) are all regarded as major successes.
MSFT has not fared as well in consumer as it has in the business space. It's easy to see why TikTok is attractive: leveraging the Xbox platform it could offer an alternative to YouTube/Twitch/FB etc., in turn gleaning data - and advertising $$$'s - from a desirable target demographic (young people!)...
... talking of which: shutting TikTok down in the US - or ensuring it transfers to US ownership - would be highly popular amongst Trumps' demographic (older people!)... strange times indeed ;-)
Updated 12th August:
Why Microsoft wants TikTok Forty-five days to close the deal
https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/3/21352309/microsoft-tiktok-acquisition-deal-why-us-countries-data
unknownx500
