'Microsoft in discussions to acquire TikTok'

WASHINGTON: United States President Donald Trump has said that tech giant Microsoft was in talks to acquire popular video-sharing platform TikTok.

Asked late Monday if Microsoft was in discussion for acquiring TikTok, Trump told reporters: "I would say yes".

"There's a lot of interest in TikTok, there's great interest in TikTok," he added aboard Air Force One.

TikTok is facing a US law that ordered the company to divest from its Chinese owner ByteDance or be banned in the US.

He noted that a "bidding war" would also be a good development.

A law banning the video-sharing platform took effect on January 19 over concerns that the Chinese government could exploit it to spy on Americans or covertly influence US public opinion.

However, Trump suspended its implementation for two and a half months, seeking a solution with Beijing.

Microsoft is among the likely buyers who would have a reason to invest in TikTok, said Angelo Zino at CFRA Research.

He believes Microsoft "has had a desire to get more entrenched into the digital ad space."

TikTok temporarily shut down in the United States as the deadline for the law approached.

Trump then promised to issue an executive order as soon as he took office to delay the ban and allow time to "make a deal."

TikTok restored service subsequently in the country, crediting Trump for making the reversal possible — though the outgoing Biden administration had earlier said that it would not enforce any ban.

Previously, in his first White House stint, Trump had attempted to ban TikTok in the US due to national security concerns.