ByteDance, the company behind the popular social media platform TikTok, has taken legal action against the US government to challenge a law that mandates the divestment of its American assets.
Legal representatives for ByteDance submitted the lawsuit to the US Court of Appeals in Washington, DC, asserting that the law is unconstitutional.
Recently signed by President Joe Biden, the law requires ByteDance to sell its US operations within nine months, with a possible extension of three months if a sale is in progress.
ByteDance argues that the timeline for divestment is unrealistic and not feasible due to various factors, including technological and legal constraints.
The company also claims that the law infringes on the First Amendment rights of free speech by singling out a specific platform for a nationwide ban.
The lawsuit highlights the challenges of transferring ownership of TikTok, citing the complexity of transferring millions of lines of code and accessing proprietary algorithms.
ByteDance insists that selling TikTok is not a viable option under the current law, potentially leading to the platform’s shutdown by January 19, 2025.
A TikTok user protests outside the US Congress on April 23, as legislation was passed to force ByteDance to divest from its US operations [Mariam Zuhaib/AP]
ByteDance’s legal challenge underscores the company’s commitment to defending its rights and the future of TikTok, a platform with over 1 billion users worldwide.
Original from www.aljazeera.com