News Mania Desk/ Piyal Chatterjee / 13th September 2024
Monday’s court hearing is crucial in the legal struggle between TikTok and parent company ByteDance, as they attempt to overturn a legislation that could prohibit the app, which is used by 170 million Americans, as early as January 19.
Oral arguments about the legal challenge will take place before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, with implications for the future of TikTok, a Chinese-owned company, during the closing weeks of the 2024 presidential election.
In an effort to win over younger voters, vice president Kamala Harris and Republican presidential contender Donald Trump are both active on TikTok.
Asserting that the rule is unconstitutional and infringes upon Americans’ right to free speech, TikTok and ByteDance describe it as “a radical departure from this country’s tradition of championing an open Internet.”
Sparked by concerns expressed by American politicians on China’s potential to obtain American data or spy on individuals through the app, the bill was overwhelmingly approved by Congress in April, just a few weeks after it was first proposed.
The bill was signed by President Joe Biden in April, and ByteDance has until January 19 to sell TikTok or risk being banned. However, he has the authority to extend the deadline by an additional three months if he determines that ByteDance is moving closer to a sale.
The law’s supporters, including the White House, insisted that the goal of the act is to test the ownership of the app by Chinese companies rather than to completely remove TikTok.
According to the White House, a ban on TikTok is not what it wants; rather, it wants Chinese-based ownership to terminate for national security reasons.
