US Supreme Court likely to uphold TikTok ban, reports say
Photo: The ban will happen if ByteDance refuses to sell the app (Getty Images)
The majority of US Supreme Court justices are likely to support a law that would ban TikTok in the United States. The ban could take effect as early as January 19, 2025, accordint o CNN, Axios, and the Associated Press.
On Friday, January 10, judges posed tough questions to the app's attorneys and a group of its content creators, and heard arguments regarding the law banning the social network. CNN reports that the judges viewed the ban law, approved by Congress last year, not primarily as a matter affecting the First Amendment, but rather as an attempt to regulate potential foreign control over an app used by 170 million Americans.
Following the session, it appears that the majority of the justices will support the ban, given concerns about TikTok’s ties to China. The law restricting the social network's operations in the US is set to take effect on January 19, unless TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, agrees to sell the app or if the Supreme Court intervenes and temporarily blocks the law.
Earlier, US Congress stated that the law is necessary because ByteDance is controlled by the Chinese government, and its ability to gather vast amounts of personal information from American users poses a national security threat.
CNN reminds that two US presidents — Donald Trump and Joe Biden — have also expressed concerns regarding content manipulation on the platform and its data collection methods. TikTok, however, claims that these concerns are speculative and rejects any suggestions that the Chinese government plays a role in selecting videos about cats, recipes, and news that millions of Americans view on the app.
It is worth noting that in early December, the US Federal Appeals Court upheld the law, which could ban TikTok in the United States as early as next week. A panel of three judges from the DC Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously sided with the US Department of Justice.
Earlier, RBC-Ukraine reported that in December, the Albanian government decided to ban TikTok in the country for at least a year.
