TikTok Faces Potential U.S. Ban as Biden Signs Legislation
President Biden has signed a bill into law that could lead to a ban on TikTok in the United States unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, divests itself of the app within approximately a year. This legislation is part of a larger aid package that includes funding for Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, Taiwan, and the Indo-Pacific region.
The ban would not take effect before the upcoming U.S. national election in November, and ByteDance has nine months to comply or face a potential ban. The company has indicated that it will challenge the legislation in court.
The legislation gives ByteDance nine months to sell TikTok or face a ban, putting the deadline around the next presidential inauguration. The legislation provides for the president to grant an extension of 90 days (giving ByteDance a full year in total) if they determine there’s progress toward divestiture.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has promised action in response to the legislation, saying that the company will continue to fight for its rights in court.
U.S. social media rivals were turning lower along with the broader market as the noon hour arrived on Wall Street: (GOOG) -0.4%; (GOOGL) -0.4%; (NASDAQ: META) -2%; (SNAP) -2.9%; (PINS) -0.6% .
