The Clock Is Now Ticking Toward a TikTok Ban in the US

Last month, the US Congress took the first step toward a potential ban on TikTok in the United States, and now, with President Joe Biden’s official signature, it’s become law.

This doesn’t put a TikTok ban into effect yet, but it does mean that the social media service could be gone from US smartphones by the end of the year if the Chinese-owned parent company fails to sell it off.

The bill, titled the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, passed the House of Representatives last month in a 352-65 vote. While it recently looked like it might have gotten stalled in the Senate, the House increased the deadline on the original bill and bundled it with a foreign aid package for US allies.

The divestment period — the time that TikTok parent ByteDance has to sell off the social media service — was originally five months, but the revised bill that went to the Senate increased that to nine months while also allowing the president to extend that by another three months if ByteDance simply needs more time to sort out a deal.

As the name of the Act suggests, the overall goal here isn’t just about TikTok; that’s simply the most prominent target. Instead, US lawmakers want to deal with all such apps that are controlled by “adversarial” foreign companies. While ByteDance isn’t technically owned or directly controlled by the Chinese government — and repeatedly insists that it won’t bow to government demands — like most large Chinese companies, it faces a great deal of indirect control and influence that can be exerted by Beijing.

For example, as CNN business reporter Laura He notes, under Chinese law, ByteDance is required to “establish an in-house Communist Party committee composed of employees who are party members.” It also had to sell a “golden share” to the Chinese government to get internet licensing for its business.

There are also less official forms of persuasion. Human Rights Watch points out that even if ByteDance genuinely wants to “be like any other popular American social media company,” it’s operating in a regime that has a long history of forcibly “disappearing” business executives who criticize the government or fail to fall in line when the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) demands that they “carry out its political deeds.”

TikTok genuinely might want to be like any other popular American social media company — whose business models unfortunately usually involve collecting massive amounts of personal data and relying on recommended algorithms that amplify misinformation and hate speech, while failing to protect the rights of vulnerable users — but the fact that TikTok is a Chinese company makes it extremely vulnerable to CCP demands. And the CCP has a record of making private Chinese companies carry out its political deeds, including censoring and surveilling Americans.Yaqui Wang, Human Rights Watch

So, it’s little wonder that the US government considers TikTok a threat to national security. In June 2022, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Brendan Carr called for Apple and Google to voluntarily remove it from the App Store and Play Store. Not long after, the US Congress banned TikTok from all federal government devices.

The US isn’t alone in its suspicions of TikTok. Governments in several other countries, including Canada, Taiwan, Australia, the European Union, New Zealand, and the UK, have issued similar bans, as have some US states. Montana even went so far as to try to block TikTok for all state residents, although that never went into effect as a US District Judge blocked the ban, saying it exceeded the state’s authority by meddling in matters related to foreign affairs.

What Happens Now?

For now, it’s business as usual for TikTok users. ByteDance has at least nine months to divest itself of TikTok, which gives it plenty of time to either work out a deal or mount a legal challenge to the bill.

At this point, it seems that the company plans to pursue that second option. In a statement to The Verge, TikTok spokesperson Alex Haurek said it’s taking the matter to court. That’s not likely to get settled in nine months, but there’s a good chance it won’t need to, as the courts could delay its enforcement until the case can be heard — and even beyond if either side appeals its decision. It could end up being years before TikTok actually gets banned.

As we continue to challenge this unconstitutional ban, we will continue investing and innovating to ensure TikTok remains a space where Americans of all walks of life can safely come to share their experiences, find joy, and be inspired.TikTok spokesperson Alex Haurek

ByteDance and TikTok also have allies on US soil that will undoubtedly challenge the bill under First Amendment issues. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has already gone on the record as saying the act suppresses free speech, encouraging legislators to vote down, with senior policy council Jenna Leventoff adding that it’s almost certain to fail a challenge in court.

Comment

This is still nothing more than an unconstitutional ban in disguise. Banning a social media platform that hundreds of millions of Americans use to express themselves would have devastating consequences for all of our First Amendment rights, and will almost certainly be struck down in court. The Senate must strip these provisions from the bill.Jenna Leventoff, senior policy counsel at the ACLU

Then there’s the matter of the upcoming US election. Even though former President Donald Trump pushed for Apple to remove “untrusted” Chinese apps when he was in office, including TikTok, he seems to have changed his position. In March, Trump said banning TikTok would clear the field for Meta and Facebook, which he considers “a true enemy of the people.” Whether those comments will translate to a reversal of the ban should Trump win the election in November remains an open question, but it’s another factor in what’s sure to become a long-running saga before TikTok even gets close to vanishing from the App Store.