TikTok ban: 170 million US users face app shutdown

• Posted on December 17, 2024December 17, 2024
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

TikTok’s US ban to proceed after court denies delay request. TikTok faces US shutdown next month (January 2025). But TikTok is taking the fight to Supreme Court.

TikTok is facing a potential shutdown in the United States next month after a US appeals court rejected its request to delay the enforcement of a law requiring its parent company, ByteDance Ltd., to divest the app or face a ban. The ban is set to take effect on January 19, 2025.

The US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit denied TikTok’s request for a stay, upholding the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACAA). The Biden administration and US officials have expressed concerns about TikTok’s ties to China-based ByteDance, citing potential national security risks related to user data and propaganda.

The court affirmed the law’s constitutionality, stating it meets First Amendment requirements. TikTok argued the ban would harm its 170 million US users and the company itself, without providing immediate national security benefits. However, the court disagreed, stating TikTok failed to provide precedent for halting an act of Congress during a Supreme Court appeal.

TikTok plans to escalate the legal battle to the Supreme Court, seeking an emergency intervention to halt the ban. The company expressed its concerns about silencing millions of American voices.

If implemented, the ban will remove TikTok from US app stores, preventing new downloads. Existing users may temporarily retain access, but updates and support will cease.

This case has garnered significant attention, with previous efforts to force a sale of TikTok during the prior administration also encountering legal and logistical challenges. TikTok has urged the incoming administration to reconsider enforcing the law.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) maintains that delaying implementation would harm national security.

With the January 19 deadline rapidly approaching, TikTok’s US future remains uncertain. The Supreme Court’s decision and the stance of the new administration will be decisive for the app’s fate in the US market.

-3News