Supreme Court Upholds TikTok Ban, While Biden Administration Delays Enforcement of Sale Deadline

Supreme Court Upholds TikTok Ban, While Biden Administration Delays Enforcement of Sale Deadline

By Alexander Mitchell

January 18, 2025 at 01:08 PM

The Supreme Court has unanimously upheld the TikTok ban law, ruling that it doesn't violate First Amendment rights. The decision maintains that the forced-sale requirement is based on national security concerns rather than content regulation.

Supreme Court at dusk

Supreme Court at dusk

The Court's opinion emphasizes that TikTok's regulation stems from data collection concerns, specifically citing "a foreign adversary's ability to leverage its control over the platform to collect vast amounts of personal data from 170 million U.S. users."

The January 19th deadline for TikTok to either sell its U.S. operations or shut down remains in place. However, the Biden administration has indicated it won't enforce this deadline, with a White House official stating that implementation will be left to the next administration.

President-elect Trump addressed the situation on Truth Social, stating that while the Supreme Court decision must be respected, his final decision on TikTok's fate requires further review.

Key points about the current situation:

  • The president can grant a one-time 90-day extension to the divestment deadline
  • Multiple bids for TikTok's U.S. operations are emerging
  • TikTok reportedly plans to proactively suspend U.S. operations on Sunday
  • The app could technically remain operational past January 19th, though it would be removed from app stores

ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, has historically resisted selling its U.S. operations. However, with the ban now upheld, a divestment may become necessary for continued operation in the United States.

The situation remains fluid, with potential executive orders and divestment negotiations likely to shape TikTok's future in the U.S. market.

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