US Senate Appears to Advance TikTok Ban Proposal

The strain’s rising on TikTok, with the U.S. Senate trying to quickly advance the proposed invoice that would power the corporate into U.S. possession, because of nationwide safety issues.

Early final month, U.S. senators proposed a new bill aimed toward addressing safety issues posed by overseas possession of social media apps, which particularly takes goal at TikTok, which is owned by Chinese language firm ByteDance. Underneath the proposal, ByteDance can be pressured to promote TikTok into American possession, in an effort to be certain that U.S. consumer knowledge will not be being shipped again to China, the place the C.C.P. might entry that information and use it as intel for political function.

The invoice was handed by the Home Power and Commerce Committee, then the House of Representatives, with a Senate vote being the following step, earlier than it might be enacted by the President. And President Biden has stated that if the invoice makes it to him, he’ll approve it.

And this week, Senators have taken steps to advance the invoice, with the TikTok proposal now bundled right into a broader overseas help package deal, which might see it handed a lot before initially anticipated.

As reported by The Financial Times:

“Republican Speaker Mike Johnson said the House would vote on three funding bills – for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan – and a fourth bill that contains language on the popular video-sharing app similar to that of a measure which last month easily passed the House but has languished in the Senate. Assuming the House backs the bills in votes on Saturday, they would be bundled into one package and sent to the Senate, according to people familiar with the plan. That would significantly boost the odds that the Senate passes the measure, since many senators will be reluctant to scupper military funding for Ukraine.”

The cumulative package deal will additional compel motion on the proposal, which might see the Senate make its name on TikTok’s destiny within the U.S. inside weeks.

To be clear, even when the invoice is handed, TikTok would nonetheless have almost a year to map out its divestment plan, and set up a brand new cope with a U.S. proprietor for the app. The one hitch then is that the Chinese language authorities has stated that it won’t allow the sale of the app, which might cease TikTok from shifting into U.S. possession both method.

So whereas the proposal in itself will not be a ban, it might successfully find yourself being such, if the C.C.P. sticks to its weapons, and refuses to permit the platform to be offered to an American proprietor.

Given this, you possibly can perceive TikTok’s annoyance on the newest strikes.

Although TikTok’s continued insistence that the invoice itself is a ban hasn’t helped to enhance its standing with U.S. politicians, who’ve been much more spooked by the app’s continued use of influence tactics to rally U.S. customers for its trigger.

So will TikTok truly be banned within the U.S.?

Properly, once more, it has to go the Senate, and a few Republican Senators have indicated that they gained’t help a ban, consistent with former President Donald Trump’s stance that TikTok shouldn’t be banned, as a result of that may solely give Meta extra energy over info move.

Which is an other than the precise focus of the proposal, however as a political difficulty, it might be voted down, alongside celebration strains.

Nevertheless it’s undoubtedly extra more likely to be handed when bundled with these different proposals. And if it does get via the Senate, it appears more and more sure that will probably be enacted.

Which might imply that TikTok is simply out there for an additional yr within the U.S., although there shall be time for the corporate and the Chinese language authorities to rethink their stance.