TikTok Appeals to Supreme Court Amid Potential U.S. Ban, Trump's Position Unclear

Dec 14, 2024, 05:25 AM

A U.S. federal appeals court has upheld a law that could lead to a nationwide ban on TikTok unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, divests from the platform by January 19, 2025. The court rejected TikTok's emergency request to pause the law's enforcement, setting the stage for potential Supreme Court review. The legislation, signed by President Joe Biden in April, aims to address national security concerns over ByteDance's ties to the Chinese government. TikTok, with 170 million U.S. users, has argued that the ban would infringe on free speech and could devastate small businesses and creators. In response to the court's decision, TikTok plans to appeal to the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, President-elect Donald Trump, who once supported a TikTok ban, has indicated he might reverse this stance upon taking office on January 20, 2025, though any change would require Congressional approval. Apple and Google have been instructed to prepare for the potential removal of TikTok from their app stores if the ban goes into effect. The law also raises concerns about data privacy and national security.