TikTok and ByteDance are set for a critical court hearing on Monday, as they attempt to block a law that could potentially ban the app, which is used by 170 million Americans, as early as January 19.
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia will hear oral arguments on the legal challenge, placing TikTok’s future at the center of the 2024 presidential election. Both Republican candidate Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have been actively using TikTok to connect with younger voters.
TikTok and ByteDance argue that the law is unconstitutional and infringes on Americans’ free speech, calling it “a radical departure” from the US tradition of supporting an open internet.
The law, passed overwhelmingly in Congress in April, stems from concerns that China could use TikTok to access American data or conduct surveillance. ByteDance has stated that selling TikTok is “not possible technologically, commercially, or legally” and warns that without court intervention, the app could face an unprecedented ban by January 19.
TikTok and the Justice Department have requested a ruling by December 6, which could give the US Supreme Court enough time to address the issue before the ban takes effect. President Joe Biden signed the law in April, giving ByteDance until January 19 to sell TikTok or face a ban, though he has the option to extend the deadline by three months if progress is being made toward a sale.
The White House emphasizes that the goal is to end Chinese ownership of TikTok for national security reasons, not to eliminate the app itself.
However, what move does ByteDance have, if any? According to the unnamed ByteDance-related sources, the algorithms crucial for TikTok’s operations are integral to ByteDance’s overall functioning. This makes a sale of the app along with its algorithms…. highly improbable.
So the chance that almost 200 million Americans will have no TikTok in 2025 is very, very real.
