TikTok Still On Track for January Ban as Appeals Court Upholds Ruling

Popular social network TikTok did not receive a reprieve from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and it is still facing a ban that is set to be enacted in January, reports The Wall Street Journal.

tiktok logo
TikTok and several of the social network's users challenged an April bill that is forcing Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok. The bill provided ByteDance with a nine-month period to sell TikTok to a company outside of China, and if the sale doesn't happen, TikTok won't be able to be distributed in the United States.

TikTok claimed that the bill was unconstitutional because it infringes on free speech, but the court rejected that claim.

While the ban is set to go into effect in January, TikTok is likely to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking an emergency stay. From there, the Supreme Court will decide whether to hear the case.

If TikTok is banned, Google, Apple, and other app distributors will not be able to provide the app for download, nor offer updates to the app. Internet hosting services will also be blocked from supporting the app, giving U.S. users no way to download it. TikTok users will, however, be able to keep using the app so long as it functions.

ByteDance does not plan to sell TikTok, and even if the company complied and did so, China would need to approve the sale. The Chinese government has made it clear that it will firmly oppose any sale of the TikTok app. ByteDance says that it would be impossible to give the TikTok source code to a new owner because it would take years for new engineers to become familiar enough with it to perform routine maintenance.

U.S. lawmakers want TikTok sold to a non-China company over concerns that the Chinese government could force ByteDance to hand over data from users in the United States, and there have also been suggestions that China could use TikTok to spread political propaganda.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Tag: TikTok

Popular Stories

Home Hub Command Center with Dome Base Feature

Apple Working on All-New Operating System

Thursday September 25, 2025 1:11 pm PDT by
Apple is developing an all-new operating system codenamed "Charismatic," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple smart home hub concept based on rumors This is likely Apple's long-rumored "homeOS" operating system. In a report last month, Gurman said both Apple's rumored smart home hub in 2026 and tabletop robot in 2027 will run the new operating system. He said the software platform ...
iOS 26

Apple Continues to Prepare iOS 26.0.1 With Multiple Bug Fixes Expected

Sunday September 28, 2025 1:30 pm PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions. The account initially said iOS 26.0.1 would have a build number of 23A350, but they now expect the update to have a build number of 23A355. This suggests that the software update will include more bug fixes or changes than initially...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

New MacBook Pro Nears Mass Production, But Four Bigger Upgrades Expected Next Year

Sunday September 28, 2025 2:08 pm PDT by
Apple's next MacBook Pro models will enter mass production soon, according to the latest information shared by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said he continues to believe the new MacBook Pro models will be released at some point between late 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, meaning they should be available to order by March at the latest. Apple often...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iPhone 16 Pro Max 80% Charge Limit: One Year Later, Was It Worth It?

Wednesday September 24, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
With the iPhone 15 series, I did an experiment and kept my iPhone's Charge Limit set at 80 percent for an entire year. It provided an interesting look at the impact of charge limits on battery longevity, so I decided to repeat it for the iPhone 16 line. Since September 2024, my iPhone 16 Pro Max has been limited to an 80 percent charge, with no cheating. As of today, my battery's maximum...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Event in October? Here's What to Expect

Monday September 29, 2025 9:31 am PDT by
Apple's annual iPhone event is in the rearview mirror, but rumors suggest the company plans to release a handful of additional products before the year ends. Will there be another Apple event this October? We discuss the possibility below. Apple in October Apple's most recent October events were in 2021 and 2023. In 2022 and 2024, Apple did not host an October event. Instead, it...
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.0.1 With Fixes for Wi-Fi, Cellular, and Camera Issues on iPhone 17 Models

Monday September 29, 2025 10:12 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 26.0.1 and iPadOS 26.0.1, the first updates to the iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 operating systems that came out earlier this week. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. According to Apple's release notes for the update, iOS 26.0.1 addresses a bug that could cause aberrations in...
iphone 17 ceramic shield

Regular iPhone 17's USB-C Charging Speeds Tested With Apple Chargers

Friday September 26, 2025 9:01 am PDT by
The website ChargerLAB has tested the standard iPhone 17 model's USB-C charging speeds with a variety of Apple's chargers, from 18W to 140W. The device reached a peak charging speed of around 27W to 28W with these Apple chargers:29W USB-C Power Adapter 30W USB-C Power Adapter 35W Dual USB-C Port Power Adapter 35W Dual USB-C Port Compact Power Adapter 40W Dynamic Power Adapter with 60W Max...
AirPods Pro 3 Newsroom

Apple's 'Back to School' Offer Ends Soon, Now Applies to AirPods Pro 3

Wednesday September 24, 2025 7:20 am PDT by
Apple's annual "Back to School" promotion for students ends soon, so act fast if you want to score free AirPods with the purchase of an eligible new Mac or iPad. Until Tuesday, September 30, college students and qualifying educational staff in the U.S. can receive free AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. This is a $179 value. ...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

Skipped the iPhone 17 Pro? Here's What is Rumored for iPhone 18 Pro

Tuesday September 23, 2025 8:55 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are still a year away, there are already a few rumors about the devices that offer an early look ahead. Below, we have recapped some of the early iPhone 18 Pro rumors so far. This story was published previously, and it has been updated to reflect the latest rumors. Many early rumors prove to be true, but nothing is confirmed yet, and Apple's...

Top Rated Comments

icanhazmac Avatar
11 months ago
I never understood why anyone would install this app.



Why does a mindless source of "stupid people tricks" need to hoover up all this data? Yes, others like Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, etc. hoover as well, but TikTok is like handing all your data straight to Pooh Bear.

Attachment Image
Score: 43 Votes (Like | Disagree)
anthogag Avatar
11 months ago
Ban it with extreme prejudice. It is crap. It produces brain rot. I would guess it spurs early dementia.

Follow Australia's lead. Ban social media crap like Tik Tok for children and teens up to 16 years old.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nt5672 Avatar
11 months ago
" impossible to give the TikTok source code to a new owner because it would take years for new engineers to become familiar enough with it to perform routine maintenance."

What a crock.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
breather Avatar
11 months ago
I was all for banning TikTok, but then I watched a piece on Last Week Tonight and not everything is black and white.

I’m now in the camp of ”they are banning TikTok because YouTube, Facebook and other American based social media wants to cripple a competitor” camp. And now I kinda don’t want the ban because competition is good and screw YouTube and Facebook.

Have a look ('https://youtu.be/5CZNlaeZAtw')
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
weckart Avatar
11 months ago

I was all for banning TikTok, but then I watched a piece on Last Week Tonight and not everything is black and white.

I’m now in the camp of ”they are banning TikTok because YouTube, Facebook and other American based social media wants to cripple a competitor” camp. And now I kinda don’t want the ban because competition is good and screw YouTube and Facebook.

Have a look ('https://youtu.be/5CZNlaeZAtw')
Given that China has blocked Facebook, Whatsapp, Bing, Youtube, Instagram and an array of social media located outside of China, I'm not sure anyone in the incoming administration is going to care a great deal about that.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
weckart Avatar
11 months ago
Given the news about Romania's presidential election, I can't see TikTok's being given the benefit of any doubt.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)