Julie Morgan

I'm Julie Morgan.

TikTok locks in a U.S.

deal, Instacart agrees to a $60 million settlement, and Nike beats expectations but still faces pressure.

The CEO of TikTok has announced that parent company ByteDance has signed binding agreements to create a U.S.

joint venture that will be majority owned by American investors.

In an internal memo to employees, he said he was pleased to share some great news, confirming that agreements with Oracle, Silverlake and MGX have been finalized.

According to the memo, the new U.S.

joint venture will be built on the foundation of TikTok's existing U.S.

data security organization.

Once the deal closes, it will operate as an independent entity with authority over U.S.

data protection, algorithm security, software assurance, and content moderation.

TikTok's global U.S.

entities will continue to manage global product interoperability and certain commercial activities, including e-commerce, advertising, and marketing.

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Instacart has reached a $60 million settlement with the U.S.

Federal Trade Commission, resolving claims related to deceptive consumer practices.

The FTC lawsuit claims the grocery delivery business misled consumers by advertising free delivery services and then charging for those services, as well as failing to disclose that consumers who signed up for a free trial would automatically be enrolled in the subscription program.

In addition, consumers who sought a refund for poor service were not offered full refunds despite a 100% satisfaction guarantee by the company.

Under the terms of the agreement with the FTC, Instacart is prohibited from making misrepresentations surrounding the cost of delivery and satisfaction guarantees.