According to the Wall Street Journal, Bobby Kotick, the former CEO of Activision Blizzard, may be preparing for a move worth hundreds of millions of dollars: He would buy TikTok!

 

 

Did anyone expect that after leaving Activision Blizzard at the end of 2023, Bobby Kotick would buy TikTok? According to the Wall Street Journal, the former CEO of the company acquired by Microsoft is preparing for a move worth hundreds of millions of dollars. One reason for the possible action is that a bill could ban TikTok in the United States. This would force the owners to sell or dispose of it.

Bobby Kotick appears ready to take on a multi-hundred-million-dollar deal. ByteDance owns TikTok but is not a publicly traded company.

However, its value reached $250 billion by January 2024, which, according to El Economista, is higher than that of well-known companies such as OpenAI or SpaceX, which are not listed on the stock market.

The former CEO of Activision Blizzard remained silent for months, but he is ready to buy the Chinese company. A few days ago, it was revealed that the United States is not giving up its attempt to kill TikTok. He says he will either cut ties with China or disappear from the country within 160 days. If the legislation recently introduced in the House of Representatives passes, TikTok could be banned.

 

Would Bobby Kotick and Sam Altman buy TikTok?!

 

“Either break with the Chinese Communist Party or lose access to American users” is the reason why TikTok and other companies would be forced to sell or withdraw so that they can be distributed in the United States.

This would mean 170 million Americans who would no longer use the app, which would be a big loss for the Beijing-based company.

It gives the impression that Bobby Kotick wants it all to himself, but that’s not the case. According to the American media, the entrepreneur is looking for partners who would help him buy the company. He reportedly “raised the idea of a partnership to buy TikTok to a group of people, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.”

If the bill passes and Biden signs the legislation, major changes are on the horizon. TikTok is fighting the legality of the rule. He argues that it violates the First Amendment to the Constitution, which guarantees freedom of the press, speech and religion, the right to assembly, and the right to a remedy from the government.

Source: WSJ, El Economista