Faced with the threat of a ban, can TikTok hold its ground in the United States ?

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The clock is ticking for TikTok. January 19 may mark the end of an era for the app's hundreds of millions of American users. If federal authorities do not suspend the application of the law passed last year in April, Apple and Google will have to remove the app from their respective stores.

As the Supreme Court prepares to examine the constitutionality of the law that could force ByteDance to divest TikTok, the app has ten days to avoid a ban on American soil. A scenario that seemed unthinkable just a few months ago, but which could become reality in the absence of a sale by ByteDance.

The legal battle: freedom of expression vs. national security

Friday promises to be a decisive day. Indeed, the Supreme Court will hear arguments from TikTok and the Department of Justice regarding the constitutionality of the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act “. This law, adopted by a large majority, places the judges in front of a dilemma: arbitrate between the protection of the first amendment, so dear to Americans, and the imperatives of national security.

Professor Saurabh Vishnubhakat of the Cardozo School of Law notes that the composition of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals panel, representing judges appointed by presidents from both parties, could foreshadow the Supreme Court’s decision. A sobering sign for TikTok: the court has already refused to suspend the law before oral arguments.

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Sell or disappear? China’s dilemma in the face of U.S. pressure

Facing the January 19 deadline, TikTok has several options. President-elect Donald Trump, who has expressed his support for enforcement, to put it mildly, could intervene either by ordering the Justice Department not to enforce the law or by promoting a divestment.

However, China's position complicates any prospect of a sale. Long Le, a professor at Santa Clara University, said the Chinese government has no interest in allowing TikTok to go through. Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry, called the U.S. pressure “bullying behavior” likely to ” damage international investor confidence “.

Among potential buyers, Project Liberty, founded by billionaire Frank McCourt, is proposing a novel approach. Acquiring TikTok's user base, content, and brand, while developing new, more transparent recommendation systems. A proposal that could satisfy both China's demand for retention of the algorithm and the U.S. desire for control over the app.

With 10 days to go, TikTok's future in the U.S. remains more uncertain than ever. Between legal constraints, geopolitical tensions and economic issues, the platform is at the heart of a standoff between two major world powers that have been waging a veritable technological cold war for several decades. A rivalry that concerns us all, because it has a direct impact on the global economy, and especially on global geopolitical stability.

• TikTok risks being banned in the United States if the April law is not suspended by January 19.
• The courts will have to decide between freedom of expression and national security, placing the application in a critical position.
• A sale seems to be the only viable outcome, but tensions with China complicate this option.

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