The U.S. Supreme Court announced Wednesday that it will hear a case brought by TikTok and its China-based parent company, ByteDance, seeking to block a law that would force the sale of the short-video app by January 19 or face a ban on national security grounds.
The justices did not immediately act on TikTok and ByteDance’s emergency request, supported by some users of the platform, for an injunction to halt the impending ban. Instead, they scheduled arguments for January 10.
The case challenges a lower court ruling that upheld the law. TikTok, used by approximately 170 million Americans, faces claims from the Justice Department that, as a Chinese company, it poses a “national security threat of immense depth and scale” due to its access to vast amounts of U.S. user data and its potential to manipulate content. TikTok has denied these allegations, asserting it poses no imminent threat to U.S. security.
TikTok and ByteDance filed a request with the Supreme Court on December 16 to pause the law, arguing that it violates First Amendment free speech protections. On Wednesday, TikTok expressed optimism about the court’s decision to hear the case, stating, “We believe the court will find the TikTok ban unconstitutional, allowing over 170 million Americans on our platform to continue exercising their free speech rights.”
The companies argue that even a one-month shutdown would cause TikTok to lose about one-third of its U.S. users, severely harming its ability to attract advertisers, content creators, and employees. However, on December 6, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit rejected TikTok’s First Amendment claims.
In their Supreme Court filing, TikTok and ByteDance argued that “if Americans, fully aware of the alleged risks of ‘covert’ content manipulation, choose to continue using TikTok, the First Amendment protects their right to do so without government censorship.”
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell urged the Supreme Court to reject any delay, likening TikTok to a dangerous criminal. A ban would significantly reduce TikTok’s value to ByteDance and its investors, while harming U.S. businesses that rely on the platform for sales.
President-elect Donald Trump, who unsuccessfully tried to ban TikTok in 2020, has reversed his position. During this year’s campaign, Trump pledged to save the app, stating on December 16, “I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok” and promising to “take a look” at the issue. Trump takes office on January 20, one day after the deadline set by the law.
In its decision, the D.C. Circuit wrote, “The First Amendment exists to protect free speech in the United States. In this case, the government acted solely to safeguard that freedom from a foreign adversary and limit that adversary’s ability to gather data on Americans.
” TikTok has denied sharing user data with Chinese authorities, accusing lawmakers of relying on speculative concerns. It described the ban as a “radical departure from the U.S. tradition of supporting an open Internet.”
The case unfolds amid heightened trade tensions between the U.S. and China. Recently, the Biden administration imposed new restrictions on China’s chip industry, prompting China to ban exports of certain metals critical to microchip production.
The U.S. law prohibits providing specific services to TikTok and other foreign-owned apps, including hosting them in app stores like Apple’s and Google’s. This would effectively end TikTok’s operations in the U.S. unless ByteDance divests the app by the deadline.
Critics warn that enforcing the ban could set a precedent for targeting other foreign-owned apps. In 2020, courts blocked Trump’s attempt to ban WeChat, a Chinese-owned app.
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