Being pressed by President Trump to "sell himself", TikTok announced that he sued the US administration in court

 

TikTok application - the most successful product of the Chinese company ByteDance said that it may have to bring the matter of being forced to "sell himself" by Mr. Trump to the US court.

On the morning of August 7, US President Donald Trump signed a decree banning TikTok and WeChat from dealing with US companies. This action will take effect in the next 45 days.

In a post on the website, TikTok said they were "shocked" with this decision. The TikTok app, the Chinese company's most successful product ByteDance, says it will likely have to take the matter to court.

"We will find ways in our power to ensure that the law is not ignored, and our company and users are treated fairly. If not through the US government, it will pass through court."

TikTok website post stated.

China also expressed opposition to the US decision. According to the New York Times, China's Foreign Ministry has declared its opposition to the decree signed by Mr. Trump. China said it would protect the legal rights and interests of its businesses.

This decree was cited by President Trump as "a national emergency related to technology and the supply chain of information and communication services".

ByteDance and Tencent will face many difficulties when this decree takes effect. Although the decree does not clearly define which transactions will be banned after September 20, however, it would be illegal for US companies to buy ads on TikTok, according to the Washington Post.

It is known that earlier, telling reporters in the Cabinet Room at the White House on August 3, President Trump suggested that it would be easier if Microsoft bought all of TikTok, instead of buying a small portion of the application. Using this video caused the brand to be split by two companies. At the same time, the head of the White House stressed that Microsoft should also spend money on the US Treasury Department as part of the deal to buy TikTok.

"I thought the 30% acquisition (of TikTok shares) was complicated, I suggested he could increase the purchase and he could give it a try."

President Trump told reporters when referring to the deal discussed over the weekend with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

Trump's statements came a day after Microsoft confirmed it was considering buying TikTok in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand markets.

Reaching a larger deal could address the US government's concerns that China is in control of the app, with hundreds of millions of users sharing short videos with music. But, if implementing the agreement as Trump suggested, it will be much more expensive than the agreement that Microsoft made on August 2.

President Trump also said that a part of the total amount to buy TikTok will have to be paid to the US Treasury Department because this is the agency that facilitates the implementation of the agreement.

"This is like the landlord-tenant relationship. Without a lease, the tenant can't rent it either, so the tenant has to pay what is called an 'unlocking fee', or pay some money."

Trump noted.

"The US side needs to be paid a substantial amount of money, because without the US, they (Microsoft) will have nothing, at least to buy back 30%.”

He added.

According to Statista, the US is currently the second country to download TikTok apps after India. As of June 30, there were 45.6 million TikTok downloads in the US in 2020. In India, this number is 99.8 million downloads.

In early July, India banned TikTok amid border tensions with China. Thus, after the Trump ban, TikTok could lose the company's second largest market.

For Tencent, the decree would apply to WeChat, the most popular messaging app in China and used by many Americans to communicate with the world's most populous country. Just on the morning of August 7, Tencent shares fell 10% in value, or about $ 45 billion.

However, a variety of gaming companies that Tencent owns or has a stake in will not be affected. According to LA Times correspondent Sam Dean, the White House official confirmed that the ordinance only banned WeChat-related transactions. So Riot Games (League of Legends), Epic Games (Fortnite) and others are safe.