OAN’s Abril Elfi
11:11 AM – Tuesday, May 7, 2024
TikTok and its parent company ByteDance have filed a lawsuit against the United States government over the potential ban of the app.
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The company has alleged a First Amendment free speech violation and is seeking to block the new law that would force the sale or ban of the app.
The petition stated that the new law “will force a shutdown of TikTok by January 19, 2025, silencing the 170 million Americans who use the platform to communicate in ways that cannot be replicated elsewhere.”
They also said that the Divestiture is “simply not possible,” especially within 270 days.
According to the petition, the Chinese government “has made clear that it would not permit a divestment of the recommendation engine that is a key to the success of TikTok in the United States.”
“For the first time in history, Congress has enacted a law that subjects a single, named speech platform to a permanent, nationwide ban, and bars every American from participating in a unique online community with more than one billion people worldwide,” the company said in its petition.
The lawsuit was filed with a federal appeals court in Washington D.C. It is seeking to block the law that was signed by President Joe Biden less than two weeks ago.
The Chinese ownership of TikTok has raised concerns among lawmakers regarding national security. Biden may decide to add three months to the January deadline.
TikTok claims that it has never been asked to give the Chinese government user data from Americans and that it wouldn’t if they asked. According to ByteDance, it will not sell its U.S. operations.
The courts have overturned earlier attempts to impose restrictions on TikTok in the United States.
If ByteDance does not sell TikTok, the law would prohibit app stores and web hosting services from making the service available to Americans.
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