The Supreme Court therefore accepts as valid the reason given by the US authorities, who consider the network as a threat to the security of Americans. The US government is demanding that TikTok cut all ties with its Chinese parent company ByteDance.
The Supreme Court of the United States, with a conservative majority, supported this Friday the law that forces the social network TikTok to suspend its activities in the country before January 19, because it has not separated from its parent company, the Chinese. ByteDans.
The ruling means that the 170 million Americans who use the app can keep it installed on their devices, but starting January 19 they may no longer receive updates or download the app, which would ultimately cause the platform to become defunct. works.
The Supreme Court therefore accepts as valid the reason given by the US authorities, who consider the network as a threat to the security of Americans. The US government is demanding that TikTok cut all ties with its Chinese parent company ByteDance, recognizing that this relationship is a threat to national security and the Americans, whose data could end up in the hands of Asian power without consent.
Faced with these arguments, TikTok has repeatedly denied that it could be used by Beijing as a tool to influence American public opinion.
“TikTok provides a distinctive medium for expression,” the U.S. Supreme Court says, but Congress has determined that divestment is necessary to address substantiated national security concerns about TikTok’s data collection practices.
Thus, the Supreme Court understands that the provisions the company sought to challenge “do not conflict with petitioners’ rights” to freedom of expression as enshrined in the First Amendment of the North American Constitution.
The application of the ruling is in Trump’s hands
The Supreme Court’s ruling was announced on the same day Donald Trump has reported that he has a phone conversation with the Chinese president, Xi Jinpingand that both leaders will “do everything possible to make the world more peaceful and secure,” beginning their mandates on Monday.
“The call was very good for both China and the US. I hope we will solve many problems together. We’ve talked about it balance sheet trading, fentanyl, TikTok and many other issues. “President Xi and I will do everything we can to make the world more peaceful and secure,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
The Supreme Court in its ruling does not clearly define the future of TikTok in the United States, which will largely depend on what the newly elected President, Donald Trump, decides, who tried to ban the application during his first term (2017-2021), although he is now in favor of continuing its activities.
The White House even said on Monday that the administration of the still president, Democrat Joe Biden, will leave the decision up to the government. how to implement the law in Trump’s hands as he takes office on January 20, the day after the ban is expected to go into effect.
Even if Biden delays implementing the ruling against Trump, TikTok could choose to proactively suspend its operations in the United States. During oral arguments before the Supreme Court last week, a lawyer for TikTok He already warned that the social network will “switch off” on Sunday. if it is not allowed to continue operating in the country, closing the door to a possible sale to a US buyer.
The ban on TikTok has its origins in a law that Congress passed in April from 2024 with the support from Democrats and Republicans. That legislation gave ByteDance nine months to sell TikTok’s U.S. operations to an investor not considered an “adversary” of the country and stipulated that it would otherwise be banned on January 19 on national security grounds.
Despite political pressure, ByteDance has refused to sell TikTok and has opted to defend itself in court, arguing that banning the application would violate the First Amendment of the US Constitution, which protects freedom of speech.
Source: EITB
I am Mary Fitzgerald, a professional journalist and author of the Today Times Live. My specialty is in writing and reporting on technology-related topics. I have spent the last seven years extensively researching and understanding the field of technology so I can properly inform my readers about developments in this ever-evolving world.
