TikTok, a popular video-sharing app, has come under fire from both the US and the EU due to concerns about data privacy and mental health risks. The US has issued an ultimatum, ordering TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest the app within 270 days or face removal from US app stores. The EU, on the other hand, is investigating TikTok Lite’s reward system, which may pose mental health risks to young users. TikTok denies these allegations and has addressed the EU’s concerns.
President Joe Biden has signed a bill mandating ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, to sell the platform to a US company within nine months. The ban aims to address concerns about user data privacy and potential access to information by Chinese authorities. If a sale is not completed within this timeframe, TikTok will face a ban in the US. However, the timeline could be extended due to court challenges.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, declined to comment on the potential impact of a new law forcing TikTok’s Chinese parent company to divest its U.S. operations. CFO Susan Li stated that it is premature to discuss the implications of the legislation, signed into law by President Biden, which could lead to a ban on TikTok within nine months unless it complies. Meta’s silence on the matter stands out as the first major tech company to report earnings since the law was passed. Industry analysts predict a potential windfall for Meta if TikTok is banned, as Facebook’s Reels feature competes directly with the Chinese app. Meta’s recent earnings report showed mixed results, with revenue and profit beats offset by lower sales forecasts and increased spending on AI, which weighed on the stock price.
The clock is ticking for TikTok as it faces a potential ban in the United States. Legislation requiring TikTok’s Chinese owners to divest sailed through Congress, igniting a 270-day countdown for a sale or US prohibition. TikTok and ByteDance, its parent company, are determined to fight the measure, claiming it infringes the free speech rights of the app’s 170 million monthly US users and poses no national security risks. The legal battle promises to be fierce, with First Amendment concerns raised as a potential hurdle. TikTok’s fate now hangs in the balance, with users, businesses, and content creators anxiously awaiting the outcome.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is weighing the possibility of reactivating his personal TikTok account as the US government moves towards banning the platform over security concerns. Singh had previously deactivated his account last year after the Canadian government banned TikTok on government-issued devices due to concerns about data sharing with China. However, Singh emphasizes the importance of safeguards to protect Canadians on all social media platforms.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has vowed to challenge in court a bipartisan bill signed into law by President Biden, which forces ByteDance, TikTok’s Beijing-based parent company, to divest the popular video-sharing app’s US assets within 270 days or face a ban. TikTok, with 170 million US users, has denied Chinese government control and plans to pursue legal action on First Amendment grounds. Despite concerns among US lawmakers over China’s potential access to American data through the app, TikTok maintains that it has invested billions in data protection and platform integrity. Legal experts believe the new legislation strengthens the Biden administration’s legal standing to ban TikTok if ByteDance fails to divest, but a judge in Montana has previously blocked a state ban on free-speech grounds. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has expressed concerns about the bill’s potential for abuse by future administrations, while some experts emphasize TikTok’s potential risks due to its vast user base and susceptibility to exploitation by foreign actors.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has stated that the company will challenge a newly implemented US law requiring the platform’s sale from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, or face a ban in the US. Chew expressed concerns that the legislation’s actual intent is not to change ownership but rather to ban access to TikTok outright.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has vowed to fight a recently signed US law that effectively bans the social media company. Chew said that the law is unconstitutional, and that the company will challenge it in court. The ban is the latest in a series of escalating tech conflicts between Washington and Beijing.
In the aftermath of President Biden’s signature on Wednesday, TikTok has declared its intent to challenge the legislation that aims to ban the app in the United States. This development follows Biden’s signing of the legislation, which grants TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, a deadline of 270 days to divest ownership of the app or face prohibition within the U.S. market. TikTok has condemned the law as unconstitutional, expressing its determination to contest it in court. The legislation forms part of a broader $95 billion foreign aid package, which includes designated funds for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan.
President Biden has signed legislation that bans TikTok in the United States unless it is sold to an American company. TikTok’s CEO, Shou Zi Chew, has responded by saying that the company will fight the ban in court, arguing that it violates the First Amendment. Chew claims that Congress is trying to suppress TikTok because it is a Chinese-owned company and that the ban is against the will of the American people.
