Microsoft is considering buying a bigger chunk of fast-growing social media giant TikTok.
According to a report in The Financial Times, Microsoft has discussed the possibility of buying TikTok’s business in Europe and India.
Previously, Microsoft had expressed an interest in TikTok’s business in the U.S., Canada, New Zealand and Australia. TikTok’s U.S. business claims about 100 million users and could be valued in the range of $20 billion to $50 billion.
Adding the European and Indian operations to the mix would obviously boost that price tag. TikTok, a unit of Beijing-based ByteDance, does not operate in China.
President Donald Trump imposed a Sept. 15 deadline on a TikTok acquisition, threatening to shut down the platform for short-form video montages in the U.S. if a deal is not completed. He’s also requested a payment to the U.S. government as part of the deal.
“It’s probably easier to buy the whole thing than to buy 30% of it,” Trump said Monday. “How do you buy 30%? Who’s going to get the name? The name is hot. The brand is hot … my personal opinion is you’re probably better off buying the whole thing. I think buying 30% is complicated.”
In a statement on Sunday, Microsoft said it would move quickly to negotiate with ByteDance.
“During this process, Microsoft looks forward to continuing dialogue with the United States Government, including with the President,” the company wrote.
The Financial Times, citing five people with knowledge of the deal, reported (subscription required) that Microsoft is interested in TikTok’s entire global business due to the complexity of separating back-end functions. A full acquisition would also allow users to seamlessly use the app between countries.
Microsoft can afford a bigger acquisition. Its market value stands at $1.6 trillion, and its cash, short-term investments stood at $136 billion as of June 30. The company’s largest acquisition to date was the $26.2 billion acquisition of business social media network LinkedIn in 2016.
Seattle-based real estate company Redfin topped Wall Street estimates for its second quarter earnings, reporting $214 million in revenue, up 8%, and a net loss per share of $0.08. Analysts expected revenue of $186 million and EPS of -$0.24.
The real estate market is on a roller coaster this year as buying activity slowed due to the pandemic but has rebounded in recent months.
“Within the span of a single quarter, year-over-year changes in demand went from -41% to +40%, a level of volatility that I have never seen in nearly 30 years of business,” Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman said in a statement. “Over the past two months, Redfin’s online visits and customer inquiries have been growing at a faster rate than at any point in the last three years. We’re inside a tornado, hiring agents, lenders and closing specialists at breakneck speed to keep up with demand, but also mindful that the bottom of the economy could fall out a second time.”
It’s quite a turnaround for Redfin, which laid off 7% of its staff and furloughed hundreds of agents in April. The company has hired most of the furloughed employees back and resumed hiring in several markets “to meet resurgence of customer demand.”
However, shares were down more than 4% in after-hours trading. After a big dip in March, Redfin’s stock price had quadrupled.
The Seattle-based real estate giant published a report last week showing a “strong” U.S. housing market, with listing prices up 13% and closed sale prices up 6% during the four-week period ending July 12. Total number of homes for sale was down 28%, “further exacerbating the imbalance between supply and demand,” Redfin noted.
Data from Realtor.com shows 18 of the top 50 U.S. real estate metros returning to or passing pre-pandemic levels of market activity, The New York Times reported.
Redfin has rolled out various digital tools such as virtual tours, video appointments with agents, and more to help adjust for social distancing mandates amid the pandemic. It also expanded its Direct Access program that lets buyers to self-tour vacant homes listed by Redfin agents.
The company said today that nearly half of surveyed homebuyers made a bid on a home without first seeing it in person, up from 28% in 2019. “Redfin agents cite health concerns around the pandemic and competition fueled by a worsening housing shortage as reasons more buyers are bidding on homes before visiting them,” the company wrote in a blog post.
Redfin last month resumed its RedfinNow home-buying business after pausing it due to the pandemic.
Redfin had 3,377 total employees as of Dec. 31, and employed more than 1,500 lead agents.
Seattle-based real estate company Redfin topped Wall Street estimates for its second quarter earnings, reporting $214 million in revenue, up 8%, and a net loss per share of $0.08. Analysts expected revenue of $186 million and EPS of -$0.24.
The real estate market is on a roller coaster this year as buying activity slowed due to the pandemic but has rebounded in recent months.
“Within the span of a single quarter, year-over-year changes in demand went from -41% to +40%, a level of volatility that I have never seen in nearly 30 years of business,” Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman said in a statement. “Over the past two months, Redfin’s online visits and customer inquiries have been growing at a faster rate than at any point in the last three years. We’re inside a tornado, hiring agents, lenders and closing specialists at breakneck speed to keep up with demand, but also mindful that the bottom of the economy could fall out a second time.”
It’s quite a turnaround for Redfin, which laid off 7% of its staff and furloughed hundreds of agents in April. The company has hired most of the furloughed employees back and resumed hiring in several markets “to meet resurgence of customer demand.”
However, shares were down more than 4% in after-hours trading. After a big dip in March, Redfin’s stock price had quadrupled.
The Seattle-based real estate giant published a report last week showing a “strong” U.S. housing market, with listing prices up 13% and closed sale prices up 6% during the four-week period ending July 12. Total number of homes for sale was down 28%, “further exacerbating the imbalance between supply and demand,” Redfin noted.
Data from Realtor.com shows 18 of the top 50 U.S. real estate metros returning to or passing pre-pandemic levels of market activity, The New York Times reported.
Redfin has rolled out various digital tools such as virtual tours, video appointments with agents, and more to help adjust for social distancing mandates amid the pandemic. It also expanded its Direct Access program that lets buyers to self-tour vacant homes listed by Redfin agents.
The company said today that nearly half of surveyed homebuyers made a bid on a home without first seeing it in person, up from 28% in 2019. “Redfin agents cite health concerns around the pandemic and competition fueled by a worsening housing shortage as reasons more buyers are bidding on homes before visiting them,” the company wrote in a blog post.
Redfin last month resumed its RedfinNow home-buying business after pausing it due to the pandemic.
Redfin had 3,377 total employees as of Dec. 31, and employed more than 1,500 lead agents.
Jeff Ma dining with his son in the San Francisco Bay Area. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Ma)
In 20 years as an entrepreneur and founder, Jeff Ma learned a thing or two about startups. Now he’s learning about how Microsoft can help them.
Ma is the new general manager for Microsoft for Startups, where he helps ensure that companies gain access to the the tech giant’s resources. The tech vet is our latest Geek of the Week.
Ma previously launched four successful companies including CircleLending (sold to Virgin), Citizen Sports (sold to Yahoo), and tenXer (sold to Twitter). He spent 3 1/2 years at Twitter eventually leading all data science and analytics.
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(GeekWire Photo / Nat Levy)
(GeekWire Photo / Nat Levy)
Jeff Ma dining with his son in the San Francisco Bay Area. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Ma)