According to an individual with knowledge of TikTok’s strategy who talked to NBC News, the firm may be getting ready to block the app from its 170 million American users on Sunday, the day a U.S. ban is scheduled to take effect.
TikTok faces closure unless it sells to a U.S. corporation and removes its Chinese ownership, according to a statute signed by President Joe Biden in April. TikTok can remain in its current form if the Supreme Court rules that the law is unlawful before then.
However, the person with knowledge of the negotiations, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not permitted to speak publicly, stated that TikTok has not yet made a final decision regarding what will happen if the Supreme Court votes against the firm. As of Wednesday noon, there were active discussions going on, including phone calls and meetings, the individual stated.
Tuesday’s reportAccording to The Information, which cited two anonymous sources that were aware of TikTok’s intentions, if the justices support the rule, the app will shut down instead of letting users who are already using it continue to use it.
According to the individual who talked with NBC News, there is also talk of the possibility that content might still be viewed on TikTok by people who have the app, even though the app would no longer receive updates. The app would eventually stop functioning because it would not be able to get bug patches and upgrades, and it would not be available for new downloads in any U.S. app stores.
According to TikTok lawyer Noel Francisco, who testified before the Supreme Court on Friday, if the firm lost the appeal, the app will shut down on January 19. According to Francisco, the platform basically shuts off.
When TikTok was outlawed in India on June 29, 2020, that is exactly what transpired. The app stopped down the night the ban took effect, according to Nikhil Pahwa, who established MediaNama, an Indian digital policy journal, as reported by NBC News.
According to Pahwa, we discovered that TikTok was inaccessible by morning. Thus, the impact was instantaneous. For a single evening, access was simply terminated. There was nowhere for users to go. TikTok advertising brands had nowhere else to go.
A notification stating that “Our services are not available in your country or region” appears when an American visiting India opens the TikTok app on their phone. According to Pahwa, the mobile app is inoperable for Indian users, and when a desktop computer user clicks on a TikTok link, a straightforward landing page stating that the app is no longer accessible in India appears.
There were 200 million internet users in India at the time, so many were shocked by the ban and unsure of what to do. He stated they needed to find a place to go. What has transpired over time is that Instagram has become the victor. Users have created accounts there, and brands have moved there. Many users were unable to replicate their TikTok success.
Instagram launched its TikTok rival Reels and YouTube debuted its rival Shorts within two months of TikTok’s prohibition in India. Although Americans have recently flocked to a Chinese app called RedNotein, which has risen to the top of Apple’s App Store, they are still the main alternative venues for short-form video content in the United States. According to Pahwa, India has already banned around 500 Chinese apps. Although several American users have suggested using a virtual private network, or VPN, to circumvent the ban, he stated that he is unable to access TikTok using this method.
TikTok offers more than just entertainment. A lot of people utilize it to earn money. While businesses utilize TikTok for promotion, some of them make it their full-time job. How creators and brands use the platform will be impacted by whether the app goes dark instantly or continues to function but deteriorates over time.
Saylor’s CEO, Will Trowbridge, collaborates on TikTok content for companies such as the Walt Disney Company. Additionally, Saylor has worked for NBCUniversal, the organization that owns NBC News. According to Trowbridge, at least one of his clients no longer wants to post, even if TikTok doesn’t disappear on January 19 and is still accessible on phones that have the app installed. Some worry that if the software can’t get updates or support, it may be more vulnerable to security threats like hacking.
According to Trowbridge, they are just ceasing because they don’t want to take the chance and don’t want to contribute to the app’s collapse. Everybody has a plan of action. Because they don’t want to confront the truth of what it would entail, they don’t want to discuss it.