Watch: TikTokers say goodbye to their ‘Chinese spy’ as they move to RedNote
The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a law banning TikTok in the United States unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, sells the platform by Sunday.
TikTok had challenged the law, arguing it would violate free speech protections for the more than 170 million users it claims to have in the United States.
But that argument was unanimously rejected by the nation’s highest court, meaning TikTok must now find an approved buyer for the US version of the app or risk being removed from app stores and websites. web hosting services.
The White House said it would be up to the administration of new President Donald Trump, which takes office Monday, to enforce the law. Trump pledged to make a decision in the “not too distant future.”
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, who is expected to attend Trump’s inauguration with other distinguished guests, said he wanted to thank the new president for his commitment to working with the app and keeping it available in the United States.
Democratic and Republican lawmakers voted last year to ban the video-sharing app over concerns about its ties to the Chinese government. TikTok has repeatedly said it does not share information with Beijing.
Passed in April last year, the law allows ByteDance, owner of TikTok, until January 19, 2025, to sell the US version of the platform to a neutral party in order to avoid an outright ban.
This would mean that starting Sunday, Apple and Google will no longer offer the app to new users or provide security updates to current users – which could potentially kill it.
ByteDance has pledged not to sell TikTok and said it plans to shut down the app’s U.S. operations on Sunday unless there is a reprieve.
The Supreme Court ruled without any dissenting opinions that the law did not violate the protection of free speech provided by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
The justices upheld a lower court’s ruling that upheld the status after it was challenged by ByteDance.
“There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok provides a distinctive and expansive means of expression, a means of engagement, and a source of community,” the Supreme Court said.
“But Congress has determined that divestment is necessary to address its well-founded national security concerns about TikTok’s data collection practices and its dealings with a foreign adversary.”
TikTok influencers: “We feel excluded and powerless in the face of the ban”
‘Stay tuned!’
Following the Supreme Court’s ruling, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that President Joe Biden’s position on TikTok has been clear for months: “TikTok should remain accessible to Americans , but simply under U.S. ownership or other ownership that addresses the national security concerns identified by Congress in crafting this law.
But because of “a simple matter of timing,” she added, the president acknowledged that “actions to implement the law must simply fall to the next administration, which takes office on Monday.”
On Friday, Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social: “The Supreme Court’s decision was expected and everyone should respect it.
“My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I need time to take stock of the situation. Stay tuned!”
He also revealed that he spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping and discussed TikTok, among other topics.
In December, Trump said he had a “hot spot” for the app because it helped him with young voters in the 2024 election.
Trump’s comments mark a reversal from his position during his first term as president, when he aimed to enact a similar ban through an executive order.
“I was homeless before TikTok”
Content creators, who bid farewell to their subscribers ahead of the impending ban, told the BBC how it could affect their livelihoods.
“I went from being a waiter to owning a house and it all started with TikTok,” says Drew Talbert, who has more than five million followers.
Kalani Smith has more than three million followers and calls the ban a “slap in the face.”
“I was homeless before TikTok and living out of the back of my car. Using TikTok has propelled me to where I am now,” he says.
“Everyone is praying for some kind of miracle. It’s like the government has its back on us.”
Kelley Heyer, who created the viral Apple dance to a Charli XCX song, says, “The government taking down TikTok is essentially the government taking away the jobs of millions of people.”
A “firm stance” for freedom of expression
The ban comes at a time when the United States is increasingly concerned about Chinese espionage.
Cybersecurity companies have suggested that the app is capable of collecting data on users beyond what they view on TikTok.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland said authoritarian regimes should not have “unfettered access” to Americans’ data and that the ruling prevented China from “weaponizing TikTok to undermine US national security”.
China enacted a law in 2017 that requires Chinese nationals living abroad to cooperate with its intelligence apparatus.
But Beijing has denied pressuring companies to collect information on its behalf and criticized the ban. TikTok has repeatedly stressed that it was not asked for its data.
The app argued that the law endangered free speech and would hit its users, advertisers, content creators and employees. TikTok has 7,000 employees in the United States.
Noel Francisco, a lawyer for TikTok and ByteDance, told the Supreme Court during arguments that the app was “one of the most popular voice platforms in America,” and said the law would require it to “become dark” unless ByteDance sells the app.
Posting on TikTok after the decision, the app’s CEO said: “This is a strong stance in support of the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship.
“We are grateful and happy to have the support of a president (Trump) who truly understands our agenda.”
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TikTok Creator Kelley Heyer Created Viral Apple Dance to Charli XCX Song
How did we get here?
April 24, 2024: Biden signs the bipartisan TikTok bill, which gives Chinese parent company ByteDance six months to sell its majority stake or face being blocked in the United States.
May 7, 2024: TikTok files suit seeking to block the law, calling it an “extraordinary intrusion into the right to free speech.”
August 2, 2024: The U.S. government files a lawsuit against TikTok, accusing the social media company of illegally collecting data about children and failing to respond when parents tried to delete their children’s accounts.
December 6, 2024: TikTok’s attempt to overturn a law that would see it banned or sold in the United States starting in early 2025 is rejected by a federal appeals court.
December 27, 2024: President-elect Donald Trump asks the U.S. Supreme Court to delay the upcoming ban while he works on a “policy resolution.”
January 10, 2025: The nine Supreme Court justices hear from lawyers representing TikTok and content creators that the ban would violate free speech protections for the platform’s more than 170 million users in the United States.
January 17, 2025: The United States Supreme Court upholds law that could lead to TikTok being banned within days on national security grounds.
January 19, 2025: Deadline for TikTok to sell its stake in the United States or face a ban. TikTok said it would “be dark” that day.
