Microsoft is in talks to purchase the social media platform TikTok in the U.S.
In a statement Sunday, Microsoft said its CEO Satya Nadella has already spoken to President Donald Trump about possibly acquiring TikTok.
The president has repeatedly expressed concerns that TikTok, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance, poses national security risks. And on Friday, he threatened to use "emergency economic powers or an executive order" to ban the platform from operating in the U.S. entirely.
Microsoft said it "fully appreciates the importance of addressing the President’s concerns." It continued by saying, "This new structure would build on the experience TikTok users currently love, while adding world-class security, privacy, and digital safety protections. The operating model for the service would be built to ensure transparency to users as well as appropriate security oversight by governments in these countries."
Microsoft expects to complete discussions about a possible deal no later than Sept. 15. Under the deal that's already been proposed, Microsoft would own and operate TikTok in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand, while ByteDance would continue to operate the app in other markets.
Contains footage from CNN.
