Washington [US], December 19: The US Supreme Court has accepted TikTok's lawsuit and scheduled it for hearing before the social network is banned in the US.
The US Supreme Court on December 18 agreed to consider TikTok 's lawsuit against a US law that requires parent company ByteDance to divest from TikTok or the platform will be banned.
President Joe Biden signed the law into law in April, and ByteDance has until January 19, 2025, to divest from TikTok. Failure to do so will result in TikTok being removed from US app stores and web hosting services.
TikTok argues that the law violates the First Amendment right to free speech. If implemented, the law would shut down one of the most popular speech platforms in the United States, the company said, a day before President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated. TikTok has 170 million users in the United States.
"This legislation would silence the voices of the plaintiffs and the many Americans who use the platform to communicate about politics, commerce, the arts, and other issues of public concern," TikTok said in a statement, citing TikTok, ByteDance, and a group of creators on the platform.
The US Supreme Court will hold a hearing on January 10, 2025, nine days before the deadline, to hear arguments from both sides. TikTok is pleased with the decision and believes the court will determine the ban is unconstitutional.
Previously, the appeals court unanimously upheld the content of the above law, arguing that the Chinese parent company's divestment from TikTok was essential to protecting national security.
The US government has accused TikTok of allowing China to collect data and track users, and of being a propaganda tool for Beijing. China and ByteDance have denied the allegations.
President-elect Trump once opposed TikTok but has now changed his mind. He is concerned that banning TikTok will benefit other social networks, especially billionaire Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook. Mr. Trump's account was suspended by Facebook after the riot at the US Congress on January 6, 2021.
Earlier this week, Mr. Trump said he had a warm spot for TikTok, and that the incoming administration would review the platform and the aforementioned ban.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
