TikTok vows legal challenge to possible US app ban

TikTok vows legal challenge to possible US app ban

TikTok will file a court challenge if Congress passes legislation paving the way for a nationwide ban on the app, a top executive told employees in an internal memo obtained by CNN.

On Saturday the House of Representatives approved a foreign aid package that contained language that could lead to a ban on TikTok — and the bill could pass the Senate in days, Michael Beckerman, TikTok’s head of public policy for America, warned employees in a memo sent on the same day.

“At the point the bill is signed [by President Joe Biden], we will move to court for a legal challenge,” Beckerman wrote to staff, describing the legislation as “an unprecedented agreement between the Republican Speaker [ Mike Johnson ] and President Biden.”

“This is the beginning, not the end of this long process,” Beckerman added. He invited employees to an internal town hall scheduled for Wednesday “for additional context.”

The memo was previously reported by The Information. A TikTok spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The law calls for forcing TikTok’s Chinese parent, ByteDance, to sell the app within 270 days — otherwise it would be illegal for US app stores to offer TikTok for download. The legislation would also allow Biden to extend that deadline for another 90 days if he determines there is progress toward a sale.

Anticipating its legal strategy, TikTok has already publicly opposed the bill as a violation of its users’ First Amendment rights. Supporters of the law, on the other hand, have said it is a necessary step to protect Americans’ personal data and have rejected its characterization as an outright ban.

Some legal experts on the First Amendment have suggested TikTok could have a case, noting that courts tend to look at the ultimate impact of challenged laws on Americans’ speech and not just their stated intent.