The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a ruling that TikTok will be banned in the country unless parent company ByteDance sells off the American portion of the business.
What Happened: In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court issued its ruling that TikTok is set to be banned on Jan. 19, ending access to updates for the app for 170 million monthly American users.
"There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community. But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok's data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary," the written ruling said.
The Supreme Court ruled TikTok's argument that the ban would violate First Amendment rights was not valid.
The written ruling cites incoming President Donald Trump, who previously issued an Executive Order in August 2020 to have TikTok banned, "the spread in the United States on mobile applications developed and owned by companies in (China) continues to threaten the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States."
Under the Supreme Court's ruling, the pending ban of TikTok will see Alphabet Inc GOOGGOOGL and Apple Inc AAPL forced to stop offering the TikTok app in its mobile app stores to American users or face fines.
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Why It's Important: The TikTok ban is set to happen on Sunday, one day before Trump will be inaugurated as president.
Trump, who previously supported a ban on TikTok, has since changed his tune and now supports keeping the app or delaying the ban. Trump is considering an executive order that could delay the ban, according to reports.
On Friday, Trump said he spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping and TikTok was among the topics discussed.
"It is my expectation that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately. We discussed balancing Trade, Fentanyl, TikTok, and many other subjects," Trump said in a post that was published before the Supreme Court announced its ruling.
The exiting Joe Biden administration is leaving the decision to ban TikTok up to Trump.
"Our position on this has been clear: TikTok should continue to operate under American ownership. Given the timing of when it goes into effect over a holiday weekend a day before the inauguration, it will be up to the next administration to implement," a White House spokesperson told ABC News.
Trump has met with TikTok CEO Shou Chew at Mar-A-Lago and a report said Chew will attend Trump's inauguration on Monday.
Trump's meeting with Chew and talks with President Jinping could be among the reasons he has changed his mind about a TikTok ban.
Another reason for the potential reversal of his stance on TikTok could be the support of Republican megadonor Jeff Yass, who owns 15% of ByteDance.
A report from Politico featured the potential of Trump looking for a way to benefit from opposing the TikTok ban.
"It's a mirror image of 2020," former technology company spokesperson Nu Wexler previously told Politico. "He tried to ban TikTok and then figured out that there was an out — that he could take care of a donor — and flipped on it."
“When it comes to Trump, follow the money," Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told Politico of Trump's TikTok reversal.
Trump acknowledged in an interview with CNBC he met with Yass but the two did not talk about TikTok or ByteDance.
While there have been several interested parties in buying the American TikTok division from ByteDance, the parent company has not indicated they will sell the division. ByteDance has also not indicated if they will end access to the app in America.
TikTok users who have already downloaded and use the app may continue to have access to the app, but will no longer get updates or receive security fixes if ByteDance keeps access to the app open.
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