The U.S. Supreme Court upholds the TikTok "sell or ban" law.

The Supreme Court of the United States ruled on Friday that a controversial TikTok ban can take effect this weekend, rejecting an appeal from TikTok's parent company. The company argued that the ban infringed on the freedom of speech rights protected by the First Amendment. The Supreme Court made the decision in an unsigned opinion and did not record any dissents. The ban will take effect on Sunday, but many unresolved questions remain about how it will be implemented, as the U.S. government has never before banned mainstream social media platforms. The Supreme Court pointed out in its opinion that TikTok is a "unique and widely-used platform for expression, interaction, and community engagement" for 170 million American users. However, the court emphasized that the focus of Congress was on national security issues, which became the decisive factor in the ruling. This decision also shifts the focus to the incoming President, Donald Trump. As the deadline for the ban's implementation approaches, the current administration of President Biden has stated that the enforcement of the ban will be left to Trump, who will be inaugurated on Monday. Nevertheless, TikTok stated that if the ban takes effect, it may "shut down completely." An official from the Biden administration told the media on Thursday that the outgoing President plans to leave the enforcement of the ban to the Trump administration. "Our position on this issue is clear: TikTok should continue to operate under American ownership," the official said. "Given the timing of the ban coming into effect on Inauguration Day over a holiday weekend, how it will be carried out will depend on the next administration." TikTok's CEO, Zhang Yiming, is expected to attend the inauguration ceremony with other tech company CEOs, signaling a potential effort by the new President to save the app. Meanwhile, some members of Congress believe that TikTok may need more time to find a buyer, providing support for Trump to postpone the ban's effective date. Under the law, the President can extend the ban by 90 days, but triggering this extension requires evidence that the parties involved have made significant progress in negotiations, including a binding legal agreement. However, ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, has not publicly updated its stance on not selling TikTok.