Summary
- The US Supreme Court has agreed to hear TikTok’s appeal against a potential US ban, which is set to kick in on January 19, 2025.
- Oral arguments are set to take place on January 10, where TikTok aims to present a case that highlights how the ban violates the First Amendment.
- It is unclear if the Supreme Court will make an expedited decision before the January 19 deadline or if it will grant TikTok an administrative stay.
TikTok’s fate in the US is hanging by a string, with the US Supreme Court now tasked with deciding if the ByteDance-owned social media platform gets to stay in the US or not.
This comes soon after the short-form video hosting platform’s appeal against the looming US ban was denied in an Appeals Court, upholding the decision that could effectively see TikTok be banned in the US starting January 19, 2024.
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The appeal denial prompted the social media company to take its case to the US Supreme Court, where it intends to present an argument about how banning TikTok as part of the ‘Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act’ violates the First Amendment.
Earlier today, Wednesday, December 18, the Supreme Court agreed to hear TikTok’s case, with oral arguments to take place on January 10, 2025, as highlighted by The New York Times. Considering that the arguments are set to take place only nine days before the social media platform’s potential ban date, it is unclear if the Supreme Court will make an expedited decision, or grant TikTok an administrative stay.
ByteDance can’t afford to ose its biggest market
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This comes shortly after the platform began offering US users up to $350 in TikTok Shop credits to invite first-timers to the app. The US is TikTok’s biggest market with over 170 million monthly users, hence why a potential ban here could be devastating for ByteDance. That is likely why it has ramped up its user acquisition efforts with the TikTok shop credits, hoping that a subset of the US user base would be willing to sideload the app if and when push comes to shove.
For what it’s worth, the operational side of the short-form video platform has already been kicked out of Canada — citing national security risks stemming from TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, and its close relationship with the Chinese government (the app is still operational in the Great White North). The US government, in similar vein, cites data collection risks and potential Chinese government influence as reasons for its proposed ban.
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