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Axel Springer chief pitched stake in TikTok Europe to US envoy

Published

Axel Springer chief executive Mathias Döpfner floated a plan to buy a stake in TikTok's European business at a January lunch with US ambassador Charles Kushner, people familiar with the talks said. The plan reportedly failed to gain traction.

The lunch took place at Axel Springer's Berlin headquarters, people familiar with the discussions said. Döpfner reportedly suggested a plan similar to the US deal brokered by President Donald Trump for TikTok's American arm. Kushner is the US ambassador to France.

The proposal was passed to European Commission officials, but it reportedly failed to gain traction. Officials on the Commission's tech side reacted without enthusiasm, and the topic was dropped, the reports said.

ByteDance, the Beijing-based owner of TikTok, said no formal acquisition talks had taken place. Axel Springer said it has long backed a European solution on the US model. The company said it would gladly take part as a key media player.

Döpfner has publicly called TikTok "one of the most dangerous propaganda machines". He has argued that it should be sold to democratic shareholders or banned in Europe.

Key facts

Who
Mathias Döpfner (Chief executive and co-owner of Axel Springer); Charles Kushner (U.S. ambassador to France); Axel Springer (media group interested in a stake in TikTok's European business); ByteDance (owner of TikTok)
What
According to people familiar with the discussions, Mathias Döpfner proposed that Axel Springer could be part of a deal to buy TikTok's European business, a plan similar to the US deal brokered by President Trump, during a lunch with Charles Kushner at Axel Springer's Berlin headquarters.
When
22 October 2026
Where
Berlin, France, Europe
Status
Reported

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