In April 2024, Congress passed a bill that was later signed into law by President Joe Biden that gave ByteDance nine months to find a United States approved buyer for the app or face a shut down. Now, the 9 months are up. 

​

ByteDance has been resisting this mandate by claiming that a TikTok ban would be in violation to the First Amendment's protections on free speech. The company believes that the law would be unconstitutional and unfairly target TikTok. 

​

With the case already passing through the lower courts, the Supreme Court is the last one standing in front of a ban. If the court ultimately rules in favor of the ban, TikTok will be forced to shut down by January 19th. The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on January 10th, during which the court will determine whether the ban violates constitutional protections.

 

With a suprising twist, former President Donald Trump, who had previously advocated for the ban, has now expressed oppostion to the ban. His team has requested a delay in the enforcement of the ban, arguing that the drastic measure could be harmful to millions of creators and users.

​