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Microsoft Corp. said its bid for TikTok\u2019s US operations was rejected by ByteDance Ltd., the Chinese parent of the video-sharing social site.<\/p>\n
\u201cByteDance let us know today they would not be selling TikTok\u2019s US operations to Microsoft,\u201d Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft said in a statement. \u201cWe are confident our proposal would have been good for TikTok\u2019s users, while protecting national security interests.\u201d<\/p>\n
Microsoft, which was working with Walmart Inc., had been seen as the more likely winner earlier in the process, but its talks have cooled, a person with knowledge of the matter said earlier today. Microsoft hadn\u2019t been asked to make revisions to its initial offer in the face of recent signs of opposition to a deal from Chinese government officials, the person added. That\u2019s given competitor Oracle Corp. an upper hand in the negotiations.<\/p>\n
Microsoft said in its statement that it was prepared to make changes aimed at addressing U.S. national security concerns. \u201cTo do this, we would have made significant changes to ensure the service met the highest standards for security, privacy, online safety, and combatting disinformation, and we made these principles clear in our August statement. We look forward to seeing how the service evolves in these important areas.\u201d<\/p>\n
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