TikTok is to face the challenge of being banned in the US on 19 January following the denial of the Supreme Court’s last-ditch legal bid by its Chinese owner, ByteDance.
It clearly says that the law banning the social media platform did not interrupt the First Amendment rights of TikTok and its 170 million users, as the companies argued.
But how effective will the country’s highest judiciary decision be in deterring Americans from using it?
President-elect Donald Trump gives a haughty statement: simply, the future of TikTok is up to him.
The White House claims, “The process of enacting the law will indeed be handed over to Trump, who will take the oath on Monday—just the day after the ban comes into effect.
So what is to happen next?
Does Trump have enough power to withdraw the ban?
As a former president, Donald Trump does not have the authority to overturn a TikTok ban if it is implemented by the U.S. government or upheld by the courts. However, if a TikTok ban were enacted during his time in office or if he were to return to the presidency, he could potentially take executive action, such as issuing an executive order or attempting to negotiate with Congress to reverse the ban or resolve concerns. Finally, a change would imperatively require another legislative or judicial action.
Although Trump might have sought to ban TikTok once, he is now firmly against the law, which is crystal clear from the repeated indications during 2024, and he even tried unsuccessfully to get it delayed.
That he has insisted TikTok’s future rests with him, in an interview with CNN, despite the court’s ruling, is the best approval of further diplomatic games with TikTok.
However, he wrote, The Supreme Court decision was inescapable, and everyone must honor it.”
“My decision on TikTok will be made in the not-too-distant future, but I must have time to reconsider the situation, prioritizing the “political solution.”
Before that interview, he had made it clear, however, that he would be seeking what he previously called a “political solution.”
On Friday, just before releasing the ruling of the court, he confirmed he spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping regarding TikTok as well as trade issues.
“I expect that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately,” he posted on the social media platform.
Mike Waltz told Fox News the president-elect was looking for ways to “preserve” TikTok, saying both Americans’ access to the platform and their data would be preserved.
“I don’t want to surpass our executive orders, but we’re looking forward to allowing the opportunity to put that deal in place,” Mr. Waltz said.
The government would be vitally telling Apple and Google that they won’t pay any penalty for continuing to allow people to download TikTok onto their devices, meaning the law would exist in place but would essentially be quiescent.
What if Trump can’t unban TikTok?
The US would likely enforce the ban, drawing an order to the app stores to make it unavailable for download in that region and would monitor whether they are compliant.
A long time away from using a legitimate means to access TikTok through digital storefronts will push to reluctance those who’ve already got it on their phones.
However, as the app most likely won’t be publicly available anymore, new updates will no longer be provided to users in the US, leading the app to be buggier and, eventually, unusable.
Of course, there are ways around bypassing such a ban.
There are already many videos circulating on TikTok notifying users how to use a VPN—a way of making it appear as if you are in another region in disguise.
The region of app stores can also be altered on most devices; hence, anyone can theoretically access apps from other countries that are regarded as breaking the law of terms and conditions.
It is also seen to install apps downloaded from the internet by modifying a device, breaking copyright law, and admitting one’s risks.
Though there is a little bit of toughness comparing their usual experience, the banning effect won’t make much difference.
However, there are other routes available to the government down the road—for example, following India’s ban on TikTok in 2020, it implemented an order to the internet providers to block access to the app altogether.
TikTok’s lawyer skeptically told the Supreme Court that he fears the app will “go dark” in the US.
Professor Milton L. Mueller of the Georgia Institute of Technology, who filed a legal brief in support of TikTok, said, The ban would legitimize the split of the internet along the national or jurisdictional territory.”.
The Why behind banning TikTok in the US?
The U.S. has considered banning TikTok primarily due to national security concerns, driven by the app’s being owned by ByteDance, a Chinese company. U.S. officials worry that TikTok could be compelled by the Chinese government to share user data, including sensitive information, due to China’s strict data laws. There are fears that the app might pose a risk to the privacy of American users and could be used for espionage or surveillance.
U.S. authorities are concerned that TikTok could be used to spread misinformation, manipulate public opinion, or promote content that aligns with China’s interests, especially around politically sensitive topics.
Some lawmakers and intelligence officials view TikTok as a potential tool for the Chinese government to gather intelligence, citing concerns about the app’s access to location data and user behavior that could be exploited.
Will ByteDance quit the piece of bread?
Up to date, ByteDance has been unwavering that no sale of its prize asset in the US is on the table.
But when there is a ban to implement, what will happen when a president who prides himself on “the art of the deal” returns to the White House?
Potential buyers continue to line up, with Bloomberg News reporting on Tuesday that the firm was looking at a sale to billionaire Elon Musk, though TikTok has since kicked out this saying as “pure fiction.”.
Trump’s former treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, and billionaire businessman Frank McCourt are among those who like dreaming of owning it.
Mr. McCourt, a former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team, said he had ensured $20 billion in verbal commitments from a consortium of investors to bid for TikTok.
The biggest YouTuber in the world, MrBeast, securing 100 million followers on TikTok, has claimed he’s now in the running to make a deal after he had billionaires reaching out to him about it, although it may seem like a joke.
What platforms could people switch to instead?
As TikTok grabs 170 million users in the US who, on average, spend 51 minutes per day on the app, banning TikTok or making it less usable will create a huge opportunity for its big tech rivals, says Jasmine Enberg, an analyst at Insider Intelligence.
“Meta-owned Instagram Reels and Google-owned YouTube Shorts are the most auto choices for displaced users, content creators, and advertisers,” she says.
Users bring advertisers—so a ban could be a big financial blow to those platforms.
“Chief Marketing Officers to whom we’ve spoken with confirmed that they will divert their media dollars to Meta and Google in case they can no longer advertise on TikTok—this is the same procedure we saw in India when they banned TikTok in 2020,” said Forrester principal analyst Kelsey Chickering.
Lemon8, which is also owned by ByteDance, would have been an essential place for people to go following a ban, but it is also at risk of being targeted as it is owned or operated by the firm. This means Lemon8 is probably also following the same fate in the US.
Some other Chinese-owned platforms, like Xiaohongshu, known as RedNote among its US users, have seen rapid increases in the US and the UK.
Till now, no existing apps can truly replace TikTok; in particular, its feature TikTok Shop is top-notch, which lets users purchase products directly from videos and makes a lot of money for US creators.
