With a potential TikTok ban fast-approaching, here's everything you need to know about what the ban would mean.
It's a bad time to be a TikTok creator in America, and while 2024 might've seen your revenue boom on the short-form video platform, 2025 could be about to hit you hard. In April 2024, President Joe Biden warned that TikTok could be banned in America in 2025, and as the big day looms, time is running out for developer ByteDance unless it sells to a non-Chinese owner.
The ban could decimate TikTok, but in an unexpected turn, President-elect Donald Trump wants to overturn the ban.
In December 2024, Trump asked the US Supreme Court to place the ban on hold, hoping that he can "resolve the issues at hand through political means once he takes office."
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If successful, Apple and Google would have to pull TikTok from their respective app stores, while service providers would also remove it from U.S. browsers.
When could TikTok be banned in America?
As far back as January 2020, there have been concerns about TikTok's status in the USA. It was then that the United States Army and Navy banned the app on all government devices because the Defense Department deemed it a security risk.
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January 19 is the all-important date that TikTok is expected to go dark in the USA. That's unless the US Supreme Court intervenes.
Toward the end of 2023, US District Judge Donald Molloy delivered a preliminary injunction to block a law in Montana that banned TikTok from all devices. Molloy said it 'oversteps state power' and violates the Constitution.
Unfortunately, TikTok is so far a little unlucky in court, with a federal appeals court rejecting its arguments in December 2024. Despite TikTok asking for a delay until the Supreme Court has said its piece, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals also rejected it.
As for Tiktok finding a new buyer, CBS News reports that the company has said it will shutter itself in the USA if the US Supreme Court upholds the ban, suggesting it isn't looking for someone else to take over.
Why is TikTok being banned in America?
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Biden warned ByteDance that it would have to divest from its Chinese owners and sell TikTok to a company that wasn't controlled by a 'foreign adversary.' TikTok sued as the case went to the US Supreme Court, and with arguments being heard on January 10, it gave TikTok just nine days to stop the ban hammer coming down.
Despite the Supreme Court previously being a little camera shy, you can tune in to watch what went down during the case.
TikTok claims that over seven million businesses would 'devastated' by the ban, with 170 American reportedly being 'silenced.'
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew previously called the ban 'ironic', stating: "The freedom of expression on TikTok reflects the same American values that make the United States a beacon of freedom. TikTok gives everyday Americans a powerful way to be seen and heard, and that's why so many people have made TikTok a part of their daily lives."
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CIA analysts claimed that while it was possible for the Chinese government to obtain personal information via TikTok, there was no evidence that it actually has.
During deliberation, Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh said: "Congress and the president were concerned that China was accessing information about millions of Americans, tens of millions of Americans, including teenagers, people in their 20s."
Kavanaugh raised concerns that data could be used "over time to develop spies, to turn people, to blackmail people, people who a generation from now will be working in the FBI or the CIA or in the State Department. Is that not a realistic assessment by Congress and the president of the risks here?"
What does the future of TikTok look like?
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For now, it's not looking good for TikTok.
The New York Times paints a grim picture for TikTok, and on Jan 10, it posted an article suggesting the justices are expected to rule quickly and ban TikTok in America.
Despite several justices being concerned that the law could violate the First Amendment, the site claims the majority are satisfied that it's not going for TikTok's right to speech, but for its Chinese-controlled ownership.
It seems unlikely that ByteDance will sell to a non-Chinese owner before January 19, meaning the whole app could soon be removed in the USA.
If there are signs of a deal, President Biden could extend the deadline by 90 days - a decision that's been championed by Senator Ed Markey and Senator Rand Paul.
In terms of potential buyers, former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and former Activision CEO Bobby Kotick have both shown an interest, while former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt has suggested a decentralized TikTok could be rebuilt on a blockchain.
The future of TikTok remains unclear, but 2025 could be one for the history books if one of the world's most popular apps goes dark in the USA.