The popular social media app TikTok will likely go dark for its 170 million American users this Sunday, Jan. 19, after months of fighting the federal government’s demand that it separate from its China-based parent company, ByteDance.
The Supreme Court on Friday unanimously upheld the federal law banning TikTok unless ByteDance sells it. Justices heard arguments last week from TikTok and ByteDance, which argued that the ban is a violation of First Amendment rights. The court disagreed.
On Friday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the issues surrounding TikTok are now the Trump administration’s responsibility.
TikTok should remain available to Americans, but simply under American ownership or other ownership that addresses the national security concerns identified by Congress in developing this law," she said in a statement. "Given the sheer fact of timing, this Administration recognizes that actions to implement the law simply must fall to the next Administration, which takes office on Monday."
President-elect Donald Trump said the Supreme Court’s decision was "expected," and added that he’ll be making a decision on the fate of TikTok "in the not too distant future."
The day after the ban is scheduled to take place, Trump will be sworn into his second term of office — with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and Chinese Vice President Han Zheng expected to be in attendance — and has reportedly considered issuing an executive order that would halt the TikTok ban for up to 90 days.
Chew thanked Trump in a TikTok video posted Friday afternoon and called Trump’s "commitment" to keeping the app in the U.S. "a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship."
Trump also shared on Truth Social on Friday that he had spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping about TikTok.
As we inch closer to the federal ban on one of the most popular social media platforms, here’s what to know about the situation.
Why is TikTok being banned?
The federal government has argued that because TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is based in China, the platform is a potential threat to national security. Therefore, TikTok could stay active in the U.S. if it separated from ByteDance and was sold to a U.S.-based company. ByteDance has said it has no plans to sell TikTok.
During the Supreme Court hearing on Jan. 10, Noel Francisco, the lawyer for TikTok and ByteDance, insisted that even though TikTok’s parent company is based in China, TikTok does not share any user data or personal information with ByteDance and that the Chinese government does not have any direct or indirect ownership or control over the company.