TikTok could fade to black in the U.S. in a matter of days after the Supreme Court rejected its appeal to halt a law that will ban the popular video app as of Jan. 19 unless Chinese parent ByteDance sells its stake.
“There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community,” the Supreme Court wrote in its unanimous opinion in the case issued Friday morning. “But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary.”
The court said that “we conclude that the challenged provisions do not violate petitioners’ First Amendment rights.” The Supreme Court affirmed the Dec. 6 judgment of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which found that the national security risks presented by TikTok’s Chinese ownership justified the divest-or-ban law.
Reps for TikTok did not immediately provide comment on the court ruling.
ByteDance has not publicly indicated any willingness to sell its TikTok stake. TikTok has told employees that they will still have jobs regardless of the Supreme Court ruling.
In the event of an unfavorable Supreme Court ruling, TikTok has been planning to shut down the app in the U.S. on Sunday, Jan. 19. At that point, TikTok users will see a pop-up message linking to a site with information about the ban. TikTokers also will have the option to download their personal data.
There still could be wiggle room for TikTok to avoid an immediate shutdown. The Biden administration is leaving the question of what to do about TikTok to President-elect Donald Trump, set to be sworn into office Jan. 20.
Trump, in a post Friday on Truth Social, wrote: “The Supreme Court decision was expected, and everyone must respect it. My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I must have time to review the situation. Stay tuned!”
Trump is trying to position himself to be seen as TikTok’s savior: He is considering issuing an executive order to suspend enforcement of the law for 60-90 days while he tries to hammer out a resolution to keep TikTok available, as first reported by the Washington Post — although it’s questionable whether Trump has the legal authority to pause the divest-or-ban law, called the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act.
Trump may also instruct the government to not enforce the ban. But given that the law imposes fines of $5,000 per user on companies that distribute or host the TikTok app, tech companies like Apple, Google and Oracle (which has an agreement to host TikTok user data in the U.S.) may be reluctant to flout the ban.
On Friday, Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social that he spoke with Chinese president Xi Jinping and “discussed balancing Trade, Fentanyl, TikTok, and many other subjects. President Xi and I will do everything possible to make the World more peaceful and safe!” Meanwhile, Trump has invited TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew to attend the incoming president’s Jan. 20 inauguration in Washington, D.C., and to “sit in a position of honor on the dais,” per the New York Times.
The shutdown of the TikTok app in the United States would be a boon to rival platforms including Meta’s Instagram, Google’s YouTube and Snapchat. Amid the looming threat of the TikTok ban, Chinese-owned social app Xiaohongshu (aka Red Note) has soared in popularity this past week.
In May 2024, TikTok and ByteDance sued the U.S. government over the divest-or-ban law, arguing the legislation violates the First Amendment rights of its U.S. users. In addition, two groups of TikTok users and creators filed petitions for review in the D. C. Circuit, challenging the constitutionality of the law. But the Supreme Court sided with the law’s backers, who have claimed TikTok represents a national security threat because Beijing-based ByteDance is subject to oversight by the Chinese Communist Party.
ByteDance and TikTok have claimed the Chinese government has never requested access to TikTok user data — and that they would not turn it over if that were the case. The Supreme Court noted in its opinion that, according to the U.S. government, ByteDance “has previously declined to agree to stop collecting U.S. user data or sending that data to China to train the algorithm.” In addition, “The Government has further noted the difficulties associated with monitoring data sharing between ByteDance Ltd. and TikTok Inc. … Under these circumstances, we find the Government’s data collection justification sufficient to sustain the challenged provisions.”
“Data collection and analysis is a common practice in this digital age,” the Supreme Court said in its opinion. “But TikTok’s scale and susceptibility to foreign adversary control, together with the vast swaths of sensitive data the platform collects, justify differential treatment to address the Government’s national security concerns.”
American lawmakers who backed the legislation have claimed it is not technically a ban because it offers ByteDance a choice: to divest TikTok’s U.S. business or to have the app shut down. TikTok and ByteDance, in their lawsuit, argued that “in reality, there is no choice,” saying the forced divestiture required by the law in order for TikTok to be allowed to continue operating in the country “is simply not possible: not commercially, not technologically, not legally.”
Chinese officials reportedly have been exploring the potential for ByteDance to sell its stake to tech mogul Elon Musk. A TikTok spokesperson called that “pure fiction.” ByteDance has said 60% of its ownership is represented by “global institutional investors” including Blackrock, General Atlantic and Susquehanna International Group.
Last year, the TikTok divest-or-ban legislation passed Congress with bipartisan support. It was signed into law by President Biden in April 2024. U.S. lawmakers have voiced concern about TikTok’s Chinese ownership, suggesting the Chinese communist regime could use the app to spy on Americans or use it to spread pro-China propaganda — despite providing no public evidence that the Chinese government has demand TikTok turn over user data or promote specific content.
The law doesn’t mandate the shutdown of TikTok per se. Rather, it prohibits Apple and Google’s app stores and web hosting services from distributing TikTok in the U.S. (under penalty of monetary fines) unless ByteDance sells its ownership stake in the app to an entity based in a country that is not designated a “foreign adversary” of the United States.
