The future of TikTok in the US is now uncertain after President Biden signed a bill requiring ByteDance, the app’s Chinese parent company, to sell TikTok within a year or face a potential ban.
The new legislation grants ByteDance 9 months to find a US buyer for TikTok, with a possible three-month extension. If a sale isn’t finalized within this timeframe, the app will be removed from US app stores, effectively cutting off new downloads and updates for existing users.
The company has vehemently opposed the legislation, calling it “unconstitutional” and vowing to fight it in court. TikTok maintains it has invested heavily in securing US user data and preventing foreign manipulation. The company also highlights its economic contributions, citing a recent report showing it generated $14.7 billion for small and mid-sized US businesses.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew also emphasized on the platform’s importance to creators and small businesses in his video response. The potential ban has sparked concerns about the livelihoods of millions who rely on TikTok for content creation, audience engagement, and revenue generation.
This isn’t the first time TikTok has faced bans. In 2020, India outlawed the app following a border dispute with China. This move paved the way for competing platforms like YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels to rapidly gain traction in the Indian market and similar bans have also occurred in other countries like Senegal and Iran.
The coming months will likely see a heated legal battle between TikTok and the US government. The outcome will determine whether TikTok can carve out a future in the US or if it becomes another casualty in the US-China trade(tech) war.
