Congress approved a law last year requiring TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, to either sell the site or shut it down by Sunday, resulting in an impending shutdown in the US.
This week, the US Supreme Court is anticipated to make a decision regarding TikTok’s legal case.
Expectations are strong that the law will remain in effect after a hearing last Friday.
This is a summary of potential future developments for TikTok in the US.
Under a ban, the US government would first direct Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, preventing new downloads as early as Sunday, a day before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
However, the app would remain on the phones of the existing 170 million US users unless TikTok directly blocks their access.
Although TikTok lawyer Noel Francisco stated the site would “go dark” on Sunday if the justices fail to block the ban, many observers doubt ByteDance would unilaterally hit the off switch for American users.
TikTok indicated as much in a memo to staff, cited in the Verge on Tuesday.
“Our offices will remain open” regardless of what happens on January 19th and employees will keep their jobs.
“The bill is not written in a way that impacts the entities through which you are employed, only the US user experience,” the memo said.
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