TikTok’s US Ban Inches Closer: Loses Legal Battle! 

TikTok's US Ban Inches Closer: Loses Legal Battle! Credit | Reuters
TikTok's US Ban Inches Closer: Loses Legal Battle! Credit | Reuters

United States: TikTok is closer to having its exit after losing its battle in the Court of Justice to overturn a controversial law banning the app from the US. 

Friday, a US appeals court affirmed the law in a ruling. 

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While denying TikTok’s argument, stating that the law was unconstitutional, the judges found the law does not “contravene the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States,” nor does it “violate the Fifth Amendment guarantee of equal protection of the laws.” 

For this ruling, TikTok was optimistic about appealing, which means the platform is one step closer to being banned in the US – if it can’t persuade Chinese parent company ByteDance to sell and find a buyer by early this year, the date will be moved up to January 19, 2025. 

After this deadline, US app stores and internet services that host TikTok will be subject to hefty fines if TikTok is not sold, CNN reported. 

In April, President Joe Biden signed a bill that required the app to be sold to a new, non-Chinese owner, or it would be banned from the US. It was done so, following the concerns on Capitol Hil, that hinted that ByteDance poses a national security risk. 

TikTok's US Ban Inches Closer: Loses Legal Battle! Credit | Pixabay
TikTok’s US Ban Inches Closer: Loses Legal Battle! Credit | Pixabay

Concerns of legislators 

In particular, legislators have been concerned that ByteDance could supply user information to the Chinese authorities to ensure political compliance or that the Chinese authorities could pressure ByteDance to skew TikTok’s suggestions to advertise state propaganda. 

TikTok had sought a restraining order against the law in May when it said that the law violates the First Amendment rights of the platform’s over 170 million users in the US. 

That lawsuit was joined by a group of individual TikTok creators who accused the company of cheating them on revenue share. 

CNN reported that the court consolidated that lawsuit with claims from a group of individual TikTok creators. 

During a hearing in September, the US government’s attorneys went further to claim that TikTok has full control over its feed and that ByteDance could use this control to alter the feed of American users. 

In many ways, Friday’s decision hinged on deference to Congress, with the court concluding that lawmakers are acting well within their constitutional rights and following the proper procedure for passing the TikTok bill. 

A major contentious feature of the case had been the offer that TikTok made to US national security officials, which TikTok said would address the spying risks. 

During the litigation, TikTok also suggested that the US government was acting in bad faith as it negotiated with TikTok for several months before cutting off talks and then supporting the legislation recently signed by Biden. 

US government lawyers, on the other hand, argued weakly that the draft deal should not be sufficient for addressing the security issues.