TikTok’s days are literally numbered in the US as bill banning the app is signed into law
What do you want to know After quickly passing the House and Senate, US President Joe Biden signed a foreign aid package that included a bill targeting TikTok. The bill gives TikTok owner ByteDance one year to divest the app or else mobile app stores will be forced to remove it. TikTok’s CEO responded on […]
What do you want to know
- After quickly passing the House and Senate, US President Joe Biden signed a foreign aid package that included a bill targeting TikTok.
- The bill gives TikTok owner ByteDance one year to divest the app or else mobile app stores will be forced to remove it.
- TikTok’s CEO responded on the platform, saying the app “isn’t going anywhere.”
President Biden signed a bill that could lead to a nationwide ban on TikTok, CNN reports. This comes just days after the House approved the bill and a day after the Senate voted in favor of it.
Nestled within a foreign aid package, the bill would make it so that app stores such as Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store cannot legally offer TikTok in the United States. However, the ban is not happening overnight, as the bill gives TikTok owner ByteDance less than a year (270 days) to divest the app and find a potential buyer.
In response to the bill’s enactment, TikTok CEO Shou Chew used the app to express his thoughts on the subject, saying, “We’re not going anywhere.”
@TIC Tac Response to TikTok Ban Bill
Chew highlights that of the platform’s more than 170 million users, more than 7 million business owners depend on TikTok for their livelihood and urges users to post videos about the app’s impact on their life. He also notes that TikTok will continue to invest in keeping its community “vibrant, exciting and safe.”
“Through our security efforts in the United States, we have safeguards in place that no other comparable company has in place. We have invested billions of dollars to secure your data and protect our platform from manipulation external.”
TikTok has come under fire in recent years for its close ties to the Chinese government through parent company ByteDance, with lawmakers expressing concerns over U.S. data. The United States has already banned the app on government-issued devices. Meanwhile, efforts to allay these concerns have largely failed, leaving TikTok’s future uncertain for the app and its users. The question also remains whether or not ByteDance will be allowed to divest TikTok.
Android Central reached out to TikTok for comment on the bill being signed, but did not receive a response in time for publication. However, a TikTok spokesperson told CNN that the company found the ban “unconstitutional” and that TikTok would continue to challenge the decision.
