TikTok's American future hangs by a thread after court upholds ban

Fate of app will lie with Trump if it finds a way to postpone ban's effective date

- Bhagyashree Garekar

WASHINGTON - TikTok is expected to appeal against a court ruling that upheld a law banning the popular app in the US over national security concerns. But unless it finds a new owner soon, its American dream may well be over.

The law was signed by President Joe Biden in April. It requires TikTok to break ties with its Chinese parent company ByteDance by Jan 19, 2025, or face removal from smartphones here.

US lawmakers were motivated by concerns that TikTok is more than just a source of entertainment or profit for its users. Proponents of the ban argue that it can be wielded by the Chinese government to influence national opinion, elections and public policy, given its ability to amplify narratives.

TikTok's argument that such fears were baseless and that the ban violated the constitutional right to free speech was rejected by the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in its Dec 6 ruling.

The court said Congress has the power to take action against TikTok to protect US national interests. Noting that the US already bans foreign ownership of broadcasting licenses, it said there was justification for banning TikTok too.

The ruling came on the same day Romania scrapped the final round of its presidential election after allegations that Russia used TikTok to influence the first round of the vote. TikTok denied the allegations.

Amid a wider US-China tug of war over technology, the TikTok case is now likely headed to the Supreme Court, although there is no guarantee it will be on the court's docket.

TikTok's Singaporean chief executive Chew Shou Zi did not immediately respond to a question from The Sunday Times about the company's path forward.

Experts in the US who track TikTok closely said the best it can hope for is to buy some time from the Supreme Court while it spins off its American operations.