There is a threat of a Tiktok ban in the USA – an overview – News

Rumors about Musk as a possible buyer of the app, what the ban would mean for users and the role of Trump.

That’s what it’s about:
The social media app Tiktok is in trouble in the USA. US authorities accuse the parent company Bytedance of misusing the app in the service of the Chinese government in order to spy on users and thus potentially exert influence. That’s why Bytedance has to separate from Tiktok according to a US law. The deadline of 270 days expires on January 19th. Without a sale, the app will be shut down in the USA on this day. Tiktok rejects the allegations and has so far refused to separate from Bytedance.

Ongoing discussions:
Tiktok objected to the US law. On Friday, the Supreme Court heard the arguments of those involved. A majority of the judges expressed their approval of the Chinese parent company Bytedance being forced to sell the social media platform. Donald Trump, who will be sworn in as the next US president on January 20, asked the judges to postpone the deadline. Trump argued that he could save the platform through negotiations while also finding a solution to the US government’s security concerns.

Musk as a potential buyer:
According to media reports, the Chinese government is considering selling Tiktok’s US business to tech billionaire Elon Musk. The option was discussed in Beijing that Musk’s online platform X could take control of Tiktok US and operate the services together. This could reduce China’s influence on Tiktok and thus avert the impending ban. When asked about the rumors, Tiktok spokesman Michael Hughes told British broadcaster BBC: “Nobody can expect us to comment on pure fiction.”

Use possible despite ban:
Even if there is a ban, people in the USA could still access Tiktok by using simple loopholes, explains SRF Digital editor Jürg Tschirren. An example of this is using a VPN (Virtual Private Network). This redirects the traffic so that it appears to the app as if the user comes from another country and not the USA. In this way, access to Tiktok would still be possible.

Hurdles for bypassing too high:
“Although access to the social network using tricks remains theoretically feasible, the hurdles are likely to be too high for many users,” says Tschirren. Social networks are designed to be as easy to use as possible. Large content creators would probably be most likely to try to continue using the application and creating content. However, the majority of users use Tiktok for entertainment. “And there are many alternatives to keep yourself entertained,” says the digital editor.

Users change platform:
Even before Tiktok was banned in the USA, users began moving to another social network. People from the USA switched to the Chinese platform Xiaohongshu. On Monday, the app shot to the top spots of downloaded applications in Apple’s App Store. Xiaohongshu may be almost entirely in Mandarin, but that doesn’t seem to deter those interested in the US.