US House passes bill that could ban TikTok in biggest market
The US House of Representatives passed a bill yesterday that would give TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to divest its US assets in the hugely popular video app – or face an outright ban in its biggest market.
While the bill passed easily with bipartisan support, with 352 votes in favour to 65 against, it will face hurdles in the Senate, where some prefer a different approach to regulating foreign-owned apps that could pose security concerns.
Describing the decision as a “ban”, TikTok urged senators to listen to voters before taking up the bill.
“This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it’s a ban,” the company said.
“We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realise the impact on the economy, seven million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service.”
The measure is the latest in a series of moves in Washington to respond to national security concerns about China. This involves a wide range of imports from vehicles to artificial intelligence chips to cranes at ports.
President Joe Biden said last week he would sign the bill.
This is despite Mr Biden’s re-election campaign opening an TikTok account in a bid to connect with younger voters.
The millions of US users make America TikTok’s biggest market. But the platform has come under increasing scrutiny over fears users’ personal information is being funnelled to China, where ByteDance is based.
Under the bill, TikTok must be sold within six months to a buyer who would have to guarantee that ByteDance would no longer have control over TikTok’s algorithms. If TikTok cannot find a buyer, app stores owned by companies such as Apple and Google would be prohibited from distributing or updating it in the US.
“China is America’s largest geopolitical foe and is using technology to actively undermine America’s economy and security,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said on X.
He said that TikTok and other apps allow Beijing to push
“harmful content to our youth and engage in malign activities”.
Marco Rubio, Republican vice chairman of the US Senate intelligence committee, said he was encouraged by the passage of the bill.
“China is already using ByteDance profiles to target and influence the behaviour, values, ideology, political opinions and votes of American TikTok users,” he said.
Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer did not say how he intends to proceed with the bill. “The Senate will review the legislation when it comes over from the House,” he said.
Maxwell Frost, the youngest serving member of Congress, was one of the few to oppose the bill, arguing the move will hit business owners and content creators hard.
“The problem is the process here, the fact that it has been steamrollered and people really cannot digest the consequences,” said Mr Frost, 27.
In a last-ditch effort to keep the bill from passing, TikTok invited content creators to meet members of Congress on Capitol Hill. The influencers said they, along with many small businesses, rely on the app to support their families.
Most of the members of Congress
who supported the ban focused their arguments on national security and concerns over Chinese ownership of the platform. National Security
Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday that the aim was to end Chinese ownership of TikTok, not to ban the app.
“Do we want the data from TikTok … to be safe here in America or going to China? That is the fundamental question and issue here,” he said.
Former president Donald Trump had sought to ban TikTok in 2020, but was blocked by the US court system. He has reversed his stance in recent days, voicing opposition to a ban.
TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew was expected to visit Capitol Hill to talk to senators, US media reported.