TikTok officially announces that it will be forced to shut down its service on January 19th after the US Supreme Court upheld the TikTok ban

On January 17, 2025 local time, the US Supreme Court ruled that the 'TikTok Ban Act,' which forces TikTok to sell or withdraw from the US, is constitutional. As a result, TikTok is forced to sell its US business or terminate its service by January 19, 2025, but TikTok officially announced that it will be 'forced to terminate its service on January 19,' revealing its intention to terminate the service.

Statement on possible shutdown | TikTok Newsroom
https://newsroom.tiktok.com/en-us/tiktokjan-17

TikTok says it will go offline on Sunday if Biden doesn't intervene - The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2025/1/17/24346272/tiktok-offline-threat-biden-trump-us-ban

In April 2024, the United States passed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA), which is effectively a 'TikTok ban' that orders TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, to sell its business in the United States.

The TikTok Ban Act requires TikTok to sell its business by January 19, 2025, and if the sale is not completed, the TikTok app will become unavailable in the United States. The Biden administration has been pushing for the TikTok ban, but the next president, Donald Trump, is scheduled to take office on January 20, 2025. The Trump administration has shown a defensive stance towards TikTok and has reportedly been preparing to halt the enforcement of the TikTok ban.

President-elect Trump considers executive order to suspend TikTok ban for 60 to 90 days - GIGAZINE

On January 17, 2025 local time, as the deadline for TikTok's sale approached, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of the TikTok ban. Regarding the ruling, the Supreme Court explained, 'There is no doubt that TikTok offers a unique and wide-ranging choice for more than 170 million Americans as a forum for expression, a means of communication, and a source of community. However, Congress has determined that the sale is necessary to address well-founded national security concerns about TikTok's data collection practices and ties to foreign adversaries.'

As a result, TikTok has until January 19th to either sell its US business or shut down its US service.

After the Supreme Court's decision was handed down, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chu said, 'I want to thank President-elect Trump for working with us to find a solution to make TikTok available in the United States. We are grateful and pleased to have the support of a president who truly understands our platform. The President has used TikTok to express his thoughts and perspectives, connect with the world, and in the process, generated more than 60 billion views of his content.' 'Rest assured, we are committed to ensuring that TikTok thrives as an online home for your limitless creativity and discovery, and a source of inspiration and joy for years to come.' 'We look forward to more developments in the future,' he said, expressing his gratitude toPresident-elect Trump, who is planning moves to keep TikTok alive .

@tiktok

Our response to the Supreme Court decision.

♬ original sound - TikTok

However, after the Supreme Court ruling, TikTok said, 'The statements released today by both the Biden Administration and the Department of Justice fail to provide the necessary clarity and assurances to the service providers essential to making TikTok available to more than 170 million Americans. Unless the Biden Administration immediately issues a clear statement that satisfies the most important service providers and ensures that enforcement will not be pursued, TikTok will unfortunately be forced to shut down the service on January 19th,' announcing that TikTok will be shut down in the United States on January 19th unless the Biden Administration intervenes. The 'most important service providers' TikTok refers to are companies that operate app stores that distribute TikTok apps, such as Apple, Google, Amazon, and Oracle.

On January 17, the White House issued a statement saying, 'President Biden's position on TikTok has been clear for several months, since Congress delivered an overwhelming bipartisan bill to the President's desk. TikTok should remain available to the American people, but it should be U.S.-owned or under other ownership that can address the national security concerns Congress identified in crafting this legislation. Given the timing alone, the Biden Administration recognizes that action to implement the TikTok ban should be left to the next Administration, which takes office on Monday.' The White House expressed the view that the decision on whether to ban TikTok should be left to the next Administration.

Meanwhile, the Department of Justice, tasked with enforcing the TikTok ban and imposing fines of $5,000 for each user who has access to the app, has said it still supports the enforcement of the law. Attorney General Merrick Garland said, 'An authoritarian regime should not have unlimited access to the sensitive data of millions of Americans,' and 'The Court's decision confirms that this law protects America's national security in a constitutional manner.'