TikTok warned on Friday (17) that there will no longer be access to the application in the United States from Sunday (19)unless US President Joe Biden’s administration gives assurances to companies like Apple and Google that they will not face enforcement action when the ban takes effect.
The statement was made hours after in the United States for national security reasons if its Chinese parent company ByteDance does not sell it, putting the popular short video app on track to become blackout.
The court’s 9-0 ruling puts the social media platform — and its 170 million American users — in limbo, and its fate in the hands of Donald Trump, who promised to rescue TikTok after returning to the presidency on Monday (20).
“Unless the Biden administration immediately provides a definitive statement to the satisfaction of the most critical service providers ensuring non-enforcement, TikTok will unfortunately be forced into the dark on January 19th,” the company said.
The White House declined to comment.
Apple, Alphabet, Google, Oracle and other companies could face huge fines if they continue to provide services to TikTok after the ban takes effect.
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The law was passed by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in Congress last year and signed by Biden, although a growing chorus of lawmakers who voted in favor of it are now trying to keep TikTok operating in the United States.
TikTok, ByteDance and some of the app’s users challenged the law, but the Supreme Court ruled that it did not violate the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protection against government restriction of free speech, as they had argued.
ByteDance did little to divest from TikTok by the Sunday deadline set by law. But the application shutdown may be brief. Trump, who in 2020 tried to ban TikTok, said he plans to take action to save the app.
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“My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I need to have time to analyze the situation. Stay tuned!” Trump said in a social media post.
TikTok Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew plans to attend Trump’s second inauguration on Monday in Washington.
Trump said he and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed TikTok in a phone call on Friday.
