TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, have filed a lawsuit against the US government to block the implementation of a law that could force TikTok to be divested from China or be banned from the U.S.
The law, known as the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversaries Act, gives ByteDance 270 days to sell TikTok to a new company allowed to operate in the US, or face a ban. The president can grant an additional 90 days if necessary.
The big picture: TikTok argued in the lawsuit that qualified divestiture is not possible, and a shutdown would cut off millions of daily users in the US.
- The law singles out TikTok by name and allows the president to name other applications under the same regulations, potentially setting a precedent for national security overreach.
- This law is the latest threat to TikTok’s future in the US, following a previous attempt by the Trump administration to ban the app, which was blocked in federal court.
- The law quickly passed through Congress, receiving broad bipartisan support with a vote of 352-65 in the House and was passed through the Senate as part of a foreign aid package.
