TikTok is throwing down the gauntlet: unless the Supreme Court intervenes, the wildly popular app will shut down operations in the United States on January 19, 2025. The move follows a contentious legal battle over a law to force its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell the platform or face a nationwide ban.
Government officials’ national security concerns, the free speech rights of TikTok’s 170 million U.S. users, and the livelihoods of millions of creators and businesses built around the app are in question. The legal showdown is set to come to a head on January 10 when the Supreme Court hears arguments that could decide the platform’s fate.
But things first started to go downhill for TikTok back in April 2024 when Congress, in a blast of bipartisan fever, passed legislation aimed at growing fears that the Chinese government may use the service to spy on people or manipulate data. That law, which President Biden signed, called on ByteDance, which is headquartered in China, to either divest itself of TikTok or get it banned nationwide. The app’s future remains uncertain, with an expected hearing by the Supreme Court slated to occur on January 10th.
The officials say ByteDance’s ownership undoubtedly poses a risk.
“Nobody can seriously dispute that ByteDance’s ownership of TikTok presents an extraordinary threat to national security,”
Said one, hinting at the government’s probable misuse of the app or manipulation of content.
TikTok has shot back that these are speculative and unfounded fears. Its legal team framed the law as an attack on First Amendment rights, positioning itself as a champion of free expression. “There is no concrete evidence to support these allegations,” TikTok has argued, calling the ban an “unprecedented assault on digital speech.”
To creators like Cora Lakey, who has built her livelihood on TikTok, a shutdown is an existential threat. “It’s not just an app; it’s my job, community, and creative outlet,” Lakey said, who earns through brand partnerships on the platform. Several creators have strategized how to take their next steps to alternatives like Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, but there’s a palpable fear of losing followers and engagement.
This also casts uncertainty over the small businesses that use TikTok as a critical marketing channel. The economic spillover could be massive, given that at least seven million small and medium-sized enterprises in the United States use it to rake in nearly US$15 billion annually.
Further complicating matters, former President Donald Trump has unexpectedly urged the court to block the law from taking effect while a “political resolution” is pursued. His attorneys have cast Trump as capable of brokering a compromise to alleviate security concerns and preserve TikTok’s operations.
Lawyers for Trump described him in a highly unusual intervention as possessing the “dealmaking expertise” needed to settle the contentious issue. However, his involvement has raised eyebrows given his administration’s earlier attempt to ban the app outright.
If the ban goes through, users who have it installed will still be able to access TikTok for some time. However, no updates, security patches, or app store availability will be allowed, making the platform unstable over time. According to analysts, TikTok might become incompatible with new smartphone operating systems in the coming months, ultimately forcing users to shift to other platforms.
The Supreme Court granted two hours of arguments on Friday, less than a week before the law takes effect. The titans in the case have assembled some of the nation’s most seasoned Supreme Court lawyers, including Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar for the Biden administration and Noel Francisco for TikTok and ByteDance.
Observers say the outcome will depend on the strictness of the court’s scrutiny of the law. In practice, laws that limit free speech rarely survive strict scrutiny. However, the appeals court that upheld the law suggested it could be an unusual exception, citing similar precedents in other businesses with foreign ownership limits.
For many, this is more than a technical headache- a cultural loss. TikTok has been a platform of creativity, education, and activism, especially for marginalized communities that use the site to make their voices heard. The shutdown promises to mute that diversity.
The TikTok saga epitomizes the tension between the US and China on technology and data privacy. A Supreme Court ruling for the government might set a precedent to regulate foreign-owned tech firms and reshape the digital economy. At the same time, a decision for TikTok will restrict the government’s powers to impose similar restrictions.
