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The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a law requiring ByteDance, the China-based parent company of TikTok, to divest its ownership of the social media platform by Sunday or face a ban from U.S. app stores.
In its petition to the Supreme Court, TikTok argued that banning the app would silence American users. “The Act will shutter one of America’s most popular speech platforms the day before a presidential inauguration,” TikTok stated. “This, in turn, will silence the speech of Applicants and the many Americans who use the platform to communicate about politics, commerce, arts, and other matters of public concern.”
The Supreme Court, however, sided with the Biden administration by upholding the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, which was signed into law in April 2024. The law mandates that third-party internet service providers like Apple and Google face penalties for supporting TikTok if ByteDance fails to comply with the divestiture by the January 19 deadline.
CNBC reported that if ByteDance does not sell TikTok, many U.S. users could lose access to the app this weekend. For those who already have TikTok installed, the app might still function, though ByteDance has also hinted at the possibility of shutting the app down entirely.
President Trump previously asked the Supreme Court to delay the ban, saying his administration sought “the opportunity to pursue a political resolution of the questions at issue in the case.”
ByteDance has so far resisted selling TikTok, leaving its future in the U.S. uncertain.
