Creator of famous adult service offers to buy TikTok

Tim Stokely, known as the founder of the adult content platform OnlyFans, has unexpectedly announced his intention to acquire TikTok's US operations from the Chinese company ByteDance. Stokely submitted his application for the acquisition on behalf of Zoop, a startup he co-founded with RJ Phillips.

This was reported by Wired.

What is known about OnlyFans' offer to acquire TikTok

ByteDance is in a critical situation: according to a law passed in January, the company has until April 5 to conclude a deal with the US or face a ban on TikTok in the US market. According to Zoop CEO R.J. Phillips, this process is taking place directly under the control of the White House, and not according to the usual corporate procedures of ByteDance.

Phillips declined to comment on the details of the negotiations, explaining only that the lawyers had found the right contact person to start the talks.

Phillips emphasizes that their team aims to build a platform with a focus on the interests of content creators. In his opinion, content creators are the ones who drive traffic, so they deserve a fair share of advertising revenue.

"For us it's always going to focus on creators first, and not on shareholders first," he explains.

In addition to Zoop and Hbar, Amazon also announced its intention to acquire TikTok this week, though according to US media reports, the seriousness of the bid is questionable.

The Chinese owner of TikTok is in danger of being banned, as the U.S. government is concerned that Chinese authorities could access the data of American users. However, the support of the Hbar Foundation, which is developing the Hedera network (described as a secure, transparent and enterprise-focused blockchain), may help convince the American side of the security of the deal.

We will soon know whether Donald Trump's administration will agree with the vision Stokely and Phillips are advocating, and whether TikTok will remain in the US market after April 5.

Earlier, Microsoft was negotiating the acquisition of TikTok. At the time, US President Donald Trump said he would like to see a bidding war for the app.

As a reminder, TikTok has launched new features to protect teens in its app. Parents will now be able to block their children from using the social network during certain hours, as well as view lists of their subscribers using the new feature,