TikTok will go “go dark” for its 170 million U.S. users on Sunday after the Supreme Court upheld a law banning the app in the United States.
President Joe Biden in April ordered TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, to sell the popular social media platform to a U.S. company or face closure due to concerns that Chinese involvement posed a national security threat. signed a law requiring them to do so.
TikTok said in a statement Friday that it will be “forced to go dark” on Jan. 19 unless the Biden administration provides clearer assurances ahead of the planned ban.
So what will happen on Sunday, and what does it mean for TikTok and its American users? Here’s everything we know.
What will happen to the TikTok app?
TikTok’s lawyer, Noel Francisco, told the Supreme Court on Friday that his understanding is that the app will essentially shut down when it gets dark.
A person familiar with the company’s plans told NBC News this week that darkening the app was a last resort. The Information reported on Tuesday that the app could go dark before the Supreme Court’s ruling, rather than allowing those already using it to continue using it.
In a statement Friday, TikTok sought to pressure the Biden administration to provide more details about the outgoing president’s plans regarding the upcoming ban.
But the White House said in a statement Friday that the Biden administration believes “action to implement the law” should be left to President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Monday. But the White House has made clear that Biden believes the platform should operate under U.S. ownership.
The Justice Department also issued a statement Friday, saying it welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the law.
TikTok, which launched in the U.S. in 2018, said both statements were “unable to provide the clarity and assurance necessary for essential service providers to make TikTok available to more than 170 million Americans.” No,” he said.
The measure will remain in the dark “unless the Biden administration immediately issues a definitive statement that satisfies our most critical service providers and guarantees there will be no enforcement,” it said.
The White House dismissed TikTok’s threat as a “stunt” in an updated statement on Saturday.
“We see no reason for TikTok or any other company to take action in the days leading up to the Trump administration’s inauguration on Monday,” the White House said in a statement. “We have stated our position clearly and openly, and it will be up to the next administration to take action to enforce this law. TikTok and other companies should therefore take any concerns into account.”
Why is TikTok banned?
There are concerns that the video-sharing platform poses a potential national security risk due to China’s involvement in the app.
The Supreme Court upheld the law Friday, rejecting TikTok’s argument that the ban violated First Amendment free speech protections. The court said in its ruling that the reason for the law was “apparently content agnostic” and had nothing to do with restricting specific speech.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said the court’s decision allows the Department of Justice to “prevent the Chinese government from weaponizing TikTok to undermine U.S. national security.”
“Authoritarian regimes should not have unfettered access to sensitive data on millions of Americans,” Garland said in a statement.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said the court’s decision is “focused on protecting Americans, not restricting free speech.”
What are TikTok users and creators doing?
Many TikTok creators direct their followers to other platforms they’re already on, like YouTube or Instagram.
Instagram chief Adam Mosseri announced Saturday that users will now be able to upload Reels that are up to three minutes long. The app previously only allowed Reels up to 90 seconds, but that changed after receiving feedback from creators who wanted to share longer videos.
Part of TikTok’s appeal is that it allows users to create short and long videos.
“We hope that extending that limit up to three minutes will help us tell the stories we really want to tell,” Mosseri said in a video message.
In October, YouTube announced that users could now post YouTube Shorts up to three minutes long, calling it the “most requested feature from creators.”
Other Chinese-owned apps are also gaining popularity. Singer-songwriter Jayla Hickmon, better known by her stage name Doechii, told her 2.5 million TikTok followers that she can be found on RedNote, an app where users can post short videos and upload images. I informed you.
However, the app is owned by Shanghai-based Xingyin Information Technology, and government insiders and experts are concerned that the app poses a greater national security and privacy threat than TikTok. There is.
TikTok also promotes a sister app, Lemon8, that allows users to upload photos and videos. The app, owned by ByteDance, tells users to log in with their TikTok account and prompts them to follow people they follow on TikTok who also have an account on Lemon8.
Users can choose what they’re interested in or want to watch, then go to the main feed, where they can scroll through videos and photos.
Will President Trump be able to end the ban?
The final decision on TikTok’s fate appears to be in the hands of the next president.
Trump unsuccessfully tried to have the platform banned during his first term, but has since changed his tune. Trump joined the app during the 2024 campaign, saying in a video posted in June, “I’m going to save TikTok.”
He issued a vague statement to Truth Social on Friday, saying “everyone must respect” the Supreme Court’s ruling. But President Trump said in a call with NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Saturday that he is “likely” to give TikTok a 90-day extension.
TikTok CEO Hsu Chu is scheduled to attend President Trump’s inauguration on Monday, along with other tech executives. “I appreciated President Trump’s commitment to working with us to find a solution to keep TikTok available in the United States,” Chu said in a video Friday.
Can TikTok still be sold?
Yes, TikTok could still be sold, but ByteDance has repeatedly said it has no plans to sell.
The company has received several serious takeover offers, including from billionaire businessman and real estate mogul Frank McCourt.
McCourt and his Internet advocacy group, Project Liberty, announced on January 9 that they had submitted an offer to buy the site. “Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’Leary also joined the effort.
Former Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said last year that he was assembling a group of investors to buy TikTok, CNBC reported.
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and businessman and YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson, known online as Mr. Beast, have also expressed interest in purchasing the app.
