Posted in: streaming, TV | Tagged: bytedance, TikTok

TikTok Ban Deadline Remains: ByteDance Loses Appeal in Federal Court

ByteDance still has until January 19, 2025, to divest from TikTok or see the service banned in the U.S. after losing in federal appeals court.

What impact incoming POTUS Donald Trump will have on the matter remains to be seen but for now? TikTok owner ByteDance still has until January 19, 2025, to divest from the popular social media service or face being banned in the U.S. After Trump's 2020 executive order to shutter the app failed in federal court, President Joseph Biden signed a bill into law in April 2024 that put ByteDance on notice – though the company vowed an appeal. Earlier today, U.S. Federal Appeals Court Judges Sri Srinivasan, Neomi Rao, and Douglas Ginsburg ruled that the law was not a violation of the company's free speech and was crafted "to protect that freedom from a foreign adversary and to limit that adversary's ability to gather data on people in the United States."

In their unanimous ruling, the federal appellate panel noted, "The First Amendment exists to protect free speech in the United States. Here, the government acted solely to protect that freedom from a foreign adversary and to limit that adversary's ability to gather data on people in the United States." The ruling continued, "The Act was the culmination of extensive, bipartisan action by the Congress and by successive presidents. It was carefully crafted to deal only with control by a foreign adversary, and it was part of a broader effort to counter a well-substantiated national security threat posed by [Chinese Communist Party]." ByteDance can choose to appeal the decision to a full appeals panel or the Supreme Court.

UPDATE: TikTok released a statement: "The Supreme Court has an established historical record of protecting Americans' right to free speech, and we expect they will do just that on this important constitutional issue. Unfortunately, the TikTok ban was conceived and pushed through based upon inaccurate, flawed and hypothetical information, resulting in outright censorship of the American people. The TikTok ban, unless stopped, will silence the voices of over 170 million Americans here in the US and around the world on January 19th, 2025."

In one of the rare instances of things actually moving quickly in Washington, D.C., it took less than a week back in April 2024 for a muchly-needed foreign aid bill to move from the U.S. Senate to the House of Representatives and to President Biden's desk for a signature. Along with $95B in aid to Ukraine, Israel & Gaza, and Taiwan & the Indo-Pacific, the bill also put ByteDance on the clock – it has 9 months (possibly 12, at the POTUS's discretion) to divest from the company or see the social media service banned in the U.S. over security concerns.

"This unconstitutional law is a TikTok ban, and we will challenge it in court. We believe the facts and the law are clearly on our side, and we will ultimately prevail. The fact is, we have invested billions of dollars to keep U.S. data safe and our platform free from outside influence and manipulation. This ban would devastate seven million businesses and silence 170 million Americans. As we continue to challenge this unconstitutional ban, we will continue investing and innovating to ensure TikTok remains a space where Americans of all walks of life can safely come to share their experiences, find joy, and be inspired," shared the company in a tweet/x posted shortly after news of President Biden signing the bill into law was announced. Here's what TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew had to say on the matter at that time

@tiktoknewsroomResponse to TikTok Ban Bill♬ original sound – TikTok Newsroom

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