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Frank McCourt's Project Liberty Bids $35-$40 Billion for TikTok's U.S. Operations

May 15, 2024, 02:51 PM

Billionaire Frank McCourt is organizing a consortium to bid for TikTok's U.S. operations. McCourt, a former Los Angeles Dodgers owner and a vocal critic of technology and social media, aims to rebuild TikTok with a focus on user privacy and data control. He has retained Guggenheim Securities to advise him on the bid. McCourt's nonprofit organization, Project Liberty, is spearheading the effort. The bid comes in the wake of U.S. government pressure on TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell its American arm. McCourt's vision for TikTok includes creating a new and better version of the internet where individuals own and control their identity and data. He refers to his effort as a "people's bid" and envisions a new architecture and an alternative internet. The U.S. business of TikTok is valued between $35 billion to $40 billion by Bloomberg analysts.