Adnkronos Washington, Jan. 17 (Adnkronos) – TikTok banned in the US from Sunday, January 19, 2025. The United States Supreme Court has confirmed the law, rejecting an appeal by the platform, in the name of freedom of expression. To avoid the ban, ByteDance must sell its activities in the United States. The decision was made unanimously, American media highlight.
The Supreme Court recognizes that for 170 million Americans, TikTok represents, among other things, "a source of community," but also notes that Congress has focused on concerns about national security. It is unclear, however, whether the ban provided by the law in the absence of a sale of the platform will go into effect, since, immediately after the announcement of the Court's decision, the White House announced that for reasons of "pure timing" it will be up to the Donald Trump administration to enforce the law. The president-elect, who has repeatedly said that , has already said that it will be "him to decide" on the issue. The ruling approved unanimously by the chief justices recalls that Trump during his first term had raised doubts about TikTok, supporting the idea of banning it.
"President Trump determined that TikTok was of particular concern, noting that it could be used to advance the interests of the Chinese government," the Court's decision reads, reiterating that the "platform extensively collects personal information about its users." And that's exactly what the ruling insists on, stating that "the government has a substantial and legitimate interest in preventing China from collecting personal data on tens of millions of TikTok users."
“Data collection and analysis is common practice in this digital age,” the ruling concludes, “but the breadth of TikTok and its potential for control by a foreign adversary justifies differential treatment to address the government’s national security concerns.”
"Congress has determined that the sale is necessary to address well-founded national security concerns regarding TikTok's data collection practices and relationships with a foreign adversary," the ruling reads.
Supporting the government's arguments, the top judges ruled that the law passed by Congress, and signed by Joe Biden in April, does not violate the First Amendment, as argued in TikTok's appeal, while acknowledging that "there is no doubt that for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok provides a distinctive and broad means of expression that is a resource for the community."
"In the end it's up to me, you'll see what I do," Donald Trump said immediately after the ruling, claiming that he will be the one to decide on the future of the popular platform that he reiterated he wants to "save".
Asked if he will take measures, such as an executive order to be signed immediately after his inauguration as the media revealed in recent days, to block the ban that could come into effect on Sunday, the day before he begins his mandate, the tycoon simply replied: "I will decide." "Congress has given me the decision and I will make the decision," he added, confirming that in the telephone conversation with Xi Jinping he also spoke about the Chinese platform. "We had a very good conversation about TikTok and a very good conversation about many other things," he said.
“I want to thank President Trump for his commitment to working with us to find a solution that keeps TikTok available in the United States,” said the platform’s CEO, Shou Chew, in a video posted after the Supreme Court ruling upholding the law against TikTok. “This is a strong stand for the First Amendment and a clear rejection of arbitrary censorship.” “As you know, we have fought to protect the constitutional right to free expression for the more than 170 million Americans who use our platform every day to connect, create, discover, and realize their dreams.” "TikTok has always been a place where people can build communities, discover common interests and express themselves, just like the more than 7 million American businesses that rely on our platform to generate revenue, reach new customers and grow their businesses successfully. We are honored and honored to have the support of a President who has fully understood the value of our platform, personally using it to share ideas, opinions and thoughts, and reaching a global audience with more than 60 billion views of his content. To our users in the United States, thank you for making our community such a rich and vibrant space, surprising and entertaining us every day. Rest assured, we will continue to do everything we can to keep TikTok your online destination, a place where creativity and discovery are limitless, and where we will continue to provide inspiration and joy for many years to come."
In the last few days.
"The administration, like the rest of the country, has been waiting for the Supreme Court's decision on TikTok. Given the sheer timing of this, this administration recognizes that enforcement of the law must fall to the next administration, which takes office on Monday," White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that it will be up to the Trump administration to enforce the law banning TikTok, upheld today by the Supreme Court.
"President Biden's position on TikTok has been clear for months, ever since Congress sent an overwhelmingly approved bill to his desk," the spokeswoman concluded. "TikTok must remain available to Americans but under American or other ownership that addresses the national security concerns outlined in the bill."
