WASHINGTON, Jan. 17 – TikTok announced late Friday that it will be forced to leave the U.S. on Sunday unless President Joe Biden's administration guarantees companies like Apple and Google that they will not face enforcement action when the ban goes into effect. I warned that it would go dark.
The statement comes as the popular short video app is expected to be shut down in just two days after the Supreme Court upholds a law banning TikTok in the United States on national security grounds if Chinese parent company ByteDance does not sell it. It was announced a few hours later.
The court's 9-0 ruling leaves the social media platform and its 170 million U.S. users in limbo, placing its fate in the hands of Donald Trump, who vowed to save TikTok after returning to office on Monday. It will be entrusted to you.
“Unfortunately, TikTok will be forced to cease service on January 19 unless the Biden administration immediately provides a definitive statement that satisfies our most critical service providers and guarantees that there will be no enforcement action,” the company said in a statement. It will happen,” he said.
The White House declined to comment.
Apple, Alphabet, Google, Oracle and others could face huge fines if they continue to provide services to TikTok after the ban goes into effect.
The law was passed and signed by Congress last year with an overwhelming bipartisan majority. bidenBut the chorus of lawmakers who voted for it is now calling for TikTok to continue operating in the United States.
TikTok, ByteDance, and some of the app's users challenged the law, but the Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment's protection against government abridgement of free speech, as they had argued. The court ruled that there was no violation.
ByteDance has done little to sell TikTok by the legal Sunday deadline. However, app shutdowns may be short-lived. President Trump, who tried to ban TikTok in 2020, said he would take the following steps: keep App.
“My decision regarding TikTok will be made in the not-too-distant future, but I need time to consider the situation. Stay tuned!” President Trump said in a social media post.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is scheduled to attend President Trump's second inauguration in Washington on Monday.
President Trump said he discussed TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a phone call on Friday.
