By Jesus Garcia
Apr 24, 2024, 16:58 PM EDT
President Joe Biden signed the bill this Wednesday to ban the social network TikTok, unless the company ByteDance sells it.
The ban on the platform was endorsed by the US Congress as part of a $95 billion supplemental budget package to send military aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
From now on, the company ByteDance has 270 days to sell the application, after congresswomen from both parties accused the company of having connections with the Chinese Communist Party and of violating the national security of the United States.
The date set by the law as the limit is January 19, 2025, but it could be longer if there is a judicial process by the company.
The debate in Congress about TikTok began in 2020, but at the same time several states began to ban the application on government equipment.
If by the time the law dictates that TikTok must be sold, then the application would be banned from app stores, such as the Android or Apple Store, as well as blocking “Internet hosting” services.
The law also gives President Biden the possibility of extending the deadline for another 90 days, if the company requests it and after demonstrating that it is making progress in the sales process.
The company’s CEO, Shou Chew, said on TikTok that the company intends to fight Congress’ decision in court.
“Rest assured: we are not going anywhere,” he said. “We are confident and will continue to fight for their rights in court. The facts and the Constitution are on our side and we hope to prevail.”
According to TikTok reports, in the US there are about 170 million users of that platform, in addition to seven million companies.
Congressmen who have spoken out against it claim that it has not been demonstrated how the platform affects the country’s national security.