Happy Friday! You made it.
Yesterday was a crazy day for TikTok, the social media app that has teenagers doing wacky dances custom-choreographed for a vertical screen.
Before the sun even came up, Kevin Mayer, TikTok's CEO, danced his way out of the company, splitting after only a few months on the job.
Mayer arrived at TikTok in June after leading Disney's streaming efforts. Needless to say, Disney and TikTok are two very different companies and, while he must have expected a battle with his critics in Washington, he said that the current state of play—with the Trump administration essentially forcing a sale of TikTok—wasn't for him.
“I understand that the role that I signed up for—including running TikTok globally—will look very different as a result of the U.S. administration’s action to push for a sell-off of the U.S. business,” he wrote in a letter to employees Thursday.
TikTok parent company ByteDance has until Sept. 20 to sell off the app if it wants to keep operating legally in the United States. And while Microsoft has been in the M&A mix for some time now—along with Oracle and some other companies—a new partner has emerged for their proposed TikTok takeover: Walmart. Yes, you heard that right.
Walmart confirmed to Adweek yesterday that it is indeed in pursuit of TikTok. “The way TikTok has integrated ecommerce and advertising capabilities in other markets is a clear benefit to creators and users in those markets,” a Walmart spokesperson told me in a statement.
All summer we've been reporting on the twists and turns in this unprecedented and fascinating case, which may see a resolution (via acquisition) in the coming days.
But so many questions are left unanswered: Could Walmart be the missing piece that Microsoft needed in this deal? What would this corporate partnership actually mean? Which buyer has more to gain? And which has more to lose? And will this ruin TikTok?
What do you think? Email me with your thoughts.
Road to Brandweek:
Coincidentally, Janey Whiteside, Walmart's evp and chief customer officer, is speaking at Brandweek this year. If you're interested in hearing from her, as well as dozens of other top marketers, during this reimagined experience for 2020, click here and use promo code BW1MVT to receive 10% off your tickets.
What else we're covering:
Sara Jerde is off this week, but you can send any tips or news items my way (scott.nover@adweek.com). She'll be back on Monday.
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