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The Supreme Court on Friday backed a law requiring Chinese company ByteDance to divest its ownership of TikTok by Sunday or face effective prohibition a popular social video program in the US
ByteDance has so far refused to sell TikTok, meaning many US users could lose access in addition this weekend. The app may still work for those who already have TikTok on their phones, although ByteDance is also threatening to shut down the app.
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration, upholding the Protecting Americans from Controlled Applications of a Foreign Adversary Act, which President Joe Biden signed in April.
“There is no doubt that for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and widespread opportunity for expression, a means of interaction and a source of community,” the Supreme Court said in its opinion. “But Congress decided that the takedown was necessary to address its well-founded national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary.”
Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch wrote the concurrence.
The fate of TikTok in the US it is now in the hands of the president-elect Donald Trumpwho initially advocated banning TikTok during his first administration, but has since backed away from the issue. Trump in December asked Supreme Court to to suspend the execution of the law and to give his administration “an opportunity to seek a political resolution of the issues at issue in the case.”
In his post on social media, Truth Social, Trump wrote that the decision was expected “and everyone should respect it.”
“My decision on TikTok will be made in the near future, but I have to have time to consider the situation. Stay tuned!” Trump wrote.
Trump became more vocal about TikTok after he met in February with billionaire Republican megadonor Jeff Yass. Jas is a major investor in ByteDance, also owning a stake Social truth.
Trump’s inauguration will take place on Monday, a day after TikTok’s sale deadline. TikTok CEO Shou Chew is one of several technical leaders attendance is expectedwho sits on the dais.
In a video posted on TikTok, Chew thanked Trump “for his commitment to working with us to find a solution that allows TikTok access” in the US. He said using TikTok is a First Amendment right, adding that more than 7 million American businesses use it to make money and find customers.
“Rest assured, we will do everything in our power to ensure that our platform continues to grow as your online home for limitless creativity and discovery, as well as a source of inspiration and joy for years to come,” he said.
The country’s highest court said that while “data collection and analysis is common practice in this digital age,” TikTok’s sheer size and its “susceptibility to surveillance by an external adversary, as well as the vast amount of sensitive data the platform collects “raises national security concerns.
Under the terms of the law, other Internet service providers such as an apple and Google will be fined for supporting ByteDance-owned TikTok after the January 19 deadline.
If service providers and app store owners comply, consumers won’t be able to install the necessary updates that make the app functional.
TikTok officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Users are looking for alternatives
White House spokeswoman Karin Jean-Pierre reiterated Biden’s support for the law in a statement, saying that “TikTok should remain available to Americans, but simply under American ownership or other ownership that addresses national security concerns identified by Congress in developing this law”.
“Given the timing itself, this administration recognizes that enforcement actions simply must belong to the next administration that takes office on Monday,” Pierre said.
Attorney General Merrick Garland and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in a release that the decision “allows the Department of Justice to prevent the Chinese government from using TikTok to undermine America’s national security.”
Kate Ruan, director of the nonprofit Center for Democracy and Technology, criticized the ruling, saying in a statement that it “harms the free expression of hundreds of millions of TikTok users in this country and around the world.”
In December, members of the special committee of the House of Representatives on the Communist Party of China sent letters to Apple CEO Tim Cook and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, urging executives to begin preparing to comply with the law.
Shaw Zichu, CEO of TikTok, speaks to reporters outside the office of Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) in the Russell Senate Office Building on March 14, 2024. in Washington, DC.
Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images
January 10 The Supreme Court heard oral arguments from lawyers representing TikTok, content creators and the US government. TikTok’s lead lawyer, Noel Francisco, argued that the law violates the First Amendment rights of the app’s 170 million American users. US Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued that the app’s alleged ties to the Chinese government posed a threat to national security.
Many TikTok creators advise their fans to find them on competing social platforms such as Google’s YouTube and Meta Facebook and Instagram, CNBC reported. In addition, Instagram executives have scheduled meetings after a Supreme Court hearing on Jan. 10 to direct workers to prepare for a wave of users if the court upholds the law.
Chinese social media app and TikTok-like RedNote rose to the top Apple’s app store on Monday, indicating that millions of TikTok users are looking for alternatives.
The Chinese government also weighed a emergency action plan which would have owner X Elon Musk acquisition of TikTok’s US operations as part of several options aimed at maintaining an effective US ban on the app, Bloomberg News reported Monday.
If ByteDance decides to sell TikTok to a US company or investor group, potential buyers may have to pay between 40 and 50 billion dollarsaccording to CFRA Senior Vice President of Research Angelo Zino.
