TikTok announces legal action against Trump administration

It is the first time that the Chinese firm has expressed the intent to challenge Trump's decision in the court

Chinese video sharing app TikTok confirmed on Saturday that it is planning to sue the Trump administration over an executive order directing the firm to divest its operations in the USA.

The legal challenge may come up this week, the firm added.

"Even though we strongly disagree with the administration's concerns, for nearly a year we have sought to engage in good faith to provide a constructive solution," TikTok told CNN.

"What we encountered instead was a lack of due process as the administration paid no attention to facts and tried to insert itself into negotiations between private businesses.

"To ensure that the rule of law is not discarded and that our company and users are treated fairly, we have no choice but to challenge the Executive Order through the judicial system."

It is the first time the Chinese firm has confirmed its intent to challenge the US government in the court.

President Trump issued the order, which described TikTok as a threat to national security, on the 6th August. The order, which was to take effect in 45 days, prohibited US citizens and companies from doing any transactions with ByteDance, TikTok's parent firm, as well as its subsidiaries.

The only way for TikTok to evade the ban is to sell its US operations to an American company.

In the order, Trump accused TikTok of automatically capturing users' data, including their location details and browsing history.

On the 14^th August, the President issued another executive order, giving the Chinese firm 90 days to sell or spin off TikTok operations in the US.

Currently, Microsoft, Oracle and Twitter have shown interest in buying TikTok.

Microsoft said earlier this month that it was exploring a deal to buy TikTok's operations in the US, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. While the company did not disclose the amount that it was willing to pay to ByteDance for its video-sharing app, some reports claimed that the Chinese firm valued all of TikTok at more than $50 billion.

A report by the Financial Times later claimed Microsoft was also considering purchasing all of TikTok's global operations, including its business in Europe and India.

A source familiar with the matter told the news agency Microsoft was discussing an agreement that would give it one year to separate TikTok from ByteDance, and to address concerns over the security of users' data.

Oracle has also expressed an interest in buying TikTok's operations in the US, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. The company has already held initial discussions with ByteDance.

Oracle's co-founder, Larry Ellison, is a big supporter of President Trump, but it is unclear whether Oracle would be the White House's preferred choice for a TikTok acquisition.