Amazon’s Bid for Tiktok
Amazon has recently submitted its application to acquire Tiktok, just days ahead of a potential ban on the video platform in the United States if it fails to secure a buyer for its operations.
According to The New York Times, which reported on Wednesday (April 2), sources close to the situation indicated that the US e-commerce giant is looking to buy “the entire Tiktok.”
This report follows statements from US President Donald Trump, who said he anticipates a transaction to save the platform will occur before the April 5 deadline. Reports also suggested that Trump met with senior White House officials on Wednesday to discuss Tiktok’s future.
“There will be a deal with Tiktok,” Trump stated to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday (March 30), according to a report from The Hill. “We have many potential buyers,” he added, citing Reuters’s coverage of “huge interest in Tiktok … I would like to see how Tiktok stays alive.”
Negotiations and Rejections
However, The New York Times reported that multiple parties involved in the negotiations have dismissed Amazon’s offer as unfeasible. Sources revealed that the proposal was sent via a letter addressed directly to Vice President JD Wance and Trade Secretary Howard Lutnik.
According to the article, Amazon declined to comment on the situation.
Previously, Amazon attempted to replicate Tiktok with a short-form feature known as Inspire, which was terminated in February, just over a year after its introduction.
Other Potential Bidders
Amazon is not the first significant retailer to show interest in Tiktok. In 2020, when Trump issued an order requiring the company to divest its US operations within 90 days, Walmart formed a partnership with Microsoft and Oracle to attempt a purchase of Tiktok’s operations in the US. However, that transaction ultimately fell through.
Last month, Politico reported that Oracle was in discussions with the White House to assume management of Tiktok’s American business, working with Vice President JD Wance and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz.
Amazon is now among the last-minute bidders. Billionaires Frank McCourt and Jesse Tinsley, founder of payroll company Employer.com, have also shown interest. Additionally, a startup called Zoop, led by Tim Stockeli, founder of the adult entertainment platform OnlyFans, announced its own bid for Tiktok operations in the US, claiming collaboration with the cryptocurrency fund Heder and establishing communication channels with the White House.
“Our bid for Tiktok is not just a change in ownership, but a vision to create a new paradigm where both creators and their communities benefit directly from the value they generate,” stated RJ Phillips, co-founder of Zoop, in a comment to Reuters.
Meanwhile, private equity firm Blaxtone is reportedly negotiating with existing non-Chinese shareholders of Bytedance, led by Saskuekhanna International Group and General Atlantic, to infuse additional capital for Tiktok’s operations in the US.
The embarrassment of AI has proposed creating a new entity that would merge its activities with Tiktok’s business in the US, potentially allowing for a 50% stake after a public offer valued at least 300 billion dollars.
The urgency of the Tiktok transaction is underscored by the legislation adopted last year by then-President Joe Biden, which compelled Baedance to divest the application or face a ban in the United States, citing national security concerns.
Despite the Supreme Court’s upholding of this law earlier this year, Trump extended the legal deadline for compliance until April 5, repeatedly promising to “save” Tiktok, which has nearly 170 million users in the US.
Amazon makes last-minute bid for TikTok as US ban deadline looms (report)
