Frank McCourt Jr. Interview: Why I Want to Buy TikTok

TikTok’s algorithm has been infamously called “addictive,” with research finding that it is “highly engaging and emotionally rewarding in nature,” which has led to compulsive (and lucrative) user numbers. It’s also why the algorithm is a main point in the ongoing saga of the app potentially being banned in the U.S. if it isn’t sold soon.

But billionaire Frank McCourt Jr., 71, tells Entrepreneur in a new interview that he and his business partners are “completely ready to buy TikTok” — and they “don’t need or want the algorithm.”

The former L.A. Dodgers owner and investor, who’s worth $2.4 billion, said that China has “made it very clear” they’re not selling it.

“So we’re in a good position if there is a transaction,” McCourt said.

Related: Emma Grede Dropped Out of School at 16. Now the Skims Boss Runs a $4 Billion Empire — Here’s How.

After last year’s law passed requiring TikTok to separate from its Beijing-based parent company, ByteDance, or face a permanent ban in the U.S., the potential to own TikTok has attracted a slew of interest from notable people and companies. (After multiple extensions, the new deadline is June 19.)

McCourt announced his $20 billion offer for TikTok in May 2024, calling it The People’s Bid for TikTok. He made the bid through Project Liberty, the $500 million initiative he founded in 2021 that focuses on creating a better Internet by giving users control over how they share their data. Over time, other public figures joined his bid, the most notable being Shark Tank investor Kevin O’Leary in January and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian in March. But so far, there haven’t been any updates.

“We’re on standby,” McCourt said.

Other bidders for TikTok include AI startup Perplexity, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, mobile advertising company AppLovin, and Amazon. McCourt said O’Leary called him after talking to all the potential bidders and determining that The People’s Bid was ahead of the rest. Ohanian connected with McCourt through a mutual friend, and also ended up publicly backing the bid’s mission.

^{Frank McCourt Jr.}

Why Frank McCourt’s Bid for TikTok Is Different

McCourt is working towards creating a new Internet, and TikTok is a stepping stone to get there.

McCourt’s bid is focused on the social media app’s 170 million users. He wants to migrate those millions of people and their data over to an open-source platform that both preserves TikTok’s user experience while also using an American-built tech stack.

The basis of this platform is called the Decentralized Social Networking Protocol (DSNP), which Project Liberty developed and first made public in 2021. DSNP stores individual data in a profile that a user can transport across a network of social apps. Users on the platform can take their connections and content, their personal data, from one DSNP app to another and dictate the terms of its use.

“We’re advocating for a new, better, advanced Internet where individuals own and control their identity and their data,” McCourt said. “We’re in charge, and our social information is ours to share with others as we see fit.”

Right now, the only social media app that uses DSNP is MeWe, which has more than 20 million users globally and began offering members the option to sign in with DSNP in September 2022. Now, McCourt wants to bring the protocol to TikTok’s 170 million users as well.

“We need to scale DSNP for it to be a true alternative, and that’s what TikTok would do,” McCourt said.

McCourt outlined a future where social apps will be interoperable, and users will be able to tap into their network no matter which social app they are logged into. So, someone on MeWe could talk to someone on TikTok, or share a link with them without logging into an account just for that one specific app.

Related: 3 Simple Steps to Start Making Money on TikTok

McCourt compared the situation to how phone numbers are now interoperable. A person using AT&T can call someone on Verizon without worrying about whether their call will go through.

“Imagine an Internet where that’s the case, where you can be on one app and I could be on another, and we’ll be able to share information,” McCourt said.

McCourt noted that gathering $20 billion for the bid was “quite easy” because “people saw the value” of the offer. And if The People’s Bid doesn’t end up being selected, McCourt isn’t ruling out developing a competing social media app.

“We may,” he said. “At some point, we just need to move forward.”