USA (Washington Insider Magazine) —In a significant move, the US House of Representatives voted on April 20 to approve a measure that requires the parent company of the popular social media platform TikTok to divest its ownership or face potential prohibition within the United States.
Under the legislation, the China-based company ByteDance has to sever its ties with TikTok within nine months. Failure to comply could lead to barring TikTok from operating within the United States. It’s essential to note that the timeframe for the sale may be extended for up to an additional year, pending approval from the US President, as per NBC News reports.
Presidential Support for Mandated TikTok Divestiture Efforts
This legislative measure stands out from previous attempts by lawmakers for two significant reasons. Firstly, the measure is appended in a comprehensive foreign aid bill that provides support to Ukraine and Israel. Secondly, it handles concerns raised by specific members of the Senate by extending the deadline for TikTok’s divestment.
According to NPR, the US intelligence community has previously alleged that China exploited TikTok to influence the 2022 midterm elections and warned about possible interference in the upcoming November elections, citing China’s averred intent to exacerbate societal divisions in the US.
National Security Concerns and the Anti-TikTok Campaign
President Biden has expressed support for this initiative, thereby expediting the process of TikTok’s divestiture or potential prohibition.
Should this legislation come into effect, it would mark a historic instance of the US government enacting a law capable of shutting down an entire social media platform, setting the stage for protracted legal disputes.
In response, TikTok has condemned the bill as an unconstitutional assault on its immensely popular service.
Heightened worries regarding propaganda dissemination and surveillance have propelled the TikTok crackdown. National security officials in Washington have raised concerns that the Chinese government might exploit TikTok to spread propaganda aimed at interfering in US elections or surveil the app’s vast user base of 170 million Americans monthly.
However, it’s worth noting that concrete evidence substantiating such fears remains elusive. Despite TikTok being owned by ByteDance, a Chinese tech conglomerate, there is a lack of publicly available proof demonstrating governmental influence on the platform’s content or instances of Chinese authorities spying on US citizens via TikTok.
The US House of Representatives is slated to vote separately on various bills this Saturday, including a substantial $95 billion foreign aid package earmarked for Ukraine and Israel, with provisions for Indo-Pacific security assistance.
Valuation of TikTok and Implications of Acquisition Attempt
Given TikTok’s vast global popularity and value, any potential sale would likely necessitate involvement from major tech companies. Speculation surrounds TikTok’s worth, with analysts estimating ByteDance’s valuation at approximately $225 billion, with TikTok being its flagship service.
However, a potential possession of TikTok by a Silicon Valley behemoth would undoubtedly attract scrutiny from antitrust regulators in Washington, who have grown increasingly wary of deals consolidating the dominance of tech giants.
Analysts remain doubtful about ByteDance’s willingness to relinquish control of TikTok, with some suggesting that the legislative push merely defers resolution until after the upcoming presidential election, offering a window for devising a comprehensive solution.
