Sell Out or Die — US Authorities Tell TikTok Platform

A decisive moment is approaching in the US in the battle over the fate of the American branch of the tech platform.

Back in the spring, Congress passed the “Protecting Americans from Apps Controlled by Foreign Actors Act,” initiated by President Biden.

By toxic apps, they meant TikTok, and by the attackers, they meant China. The law explicitly requires that the Beijing-based IT company ByteDance, the owner of the American TikTok, sell the platform to an agreed American buyer by January 19. It is possible to extend the deadline for preparing the deal by 90 days.

The law does not qualify the use of TikTok as a crime. But it prohibits mobile app stores from allowing users to download or update TikTok, which is used by about 170 million Americans, or about half the country’s population.

The U.S. government says China’s potential to use TikTok to wage information warfare and spy on Americans poses a national security threat. And it says separating TikTok from Chinese ownership is the only way to eliminate the threat.

ByteDance has said it cannot and will not sell its services in the U.S. The Chinese government has also made it clear it will not allow TikTok to be forcibly sold.

Many American TikTok users are banding together to sue the government for violating their rights. A federal court verdict is expected in the coming days. And the final decision will be made later in the Supreme Court.