The Bill Gives TikTok’s China linked parent company five months to divest before the app is removed from Google and Apple App stores.
CNN reports, “The House has vote Wednesday on a bill that could lead to a nationwide ban against TikTok, a major challenge to one of the world’s most popular social media apps. The bill would prohibit TikTok from US app stores unless the social media platform — used by roughly 170 million Americans — is spun off from its China-linked parent company, ByteDance.
Lawmakers supportive of the bill have argued TikTok poses a national security threat because the Chinese government could use its intelligence laws against ByteDance, forcing it to hand over the data of US app users.
In a rare show of bipartisanship, the measure advanced unanimously out of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee, and President Joe Biden has said he would sign the bill if it makes it to his desk. The bill would give ByteDance roughly five months to sell TikTok. If not divested by that time, it would be illegal for app store operators such as Apple and Google to make it available for download.
The vote count proved to be an overwhelming win for those interested in banning the platform even though voters against the bill say the economic impact will be huge. Per AP, the bill, passed by a vote of 352-65, now goes to the Senate, where its prospects are unclear. TikTok, which has more than 150 million American users, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd.