TikTok is suing to stop a US bill that would outlaw apps.
The social media giant and its 170 million American users described the statute as a «extraordinary intrusion on free speech rights» in the lawsuit.
It requested the court to halt the action, claiming that the US had simply raised «speculative concerns» to support the move.
Last month, President Joe Biden signed the bill into law, claiming reasons related to national security.
The argument that TikTok’s Chinese ownership increases the possibility that user data from the US may end up in the hands of the Chinese government or be used for propaganda has been the subject of years of discussion in Washington.
While parent firm ByteDance has stated it has no plans to sell the company, TikTok has insisted it remains autonomous.
The Chinese government has threatened to block a sale, denouncing the law as US «bullying» of a foreign company.
Unless parent firm ByteDance finds a buyer, app retailers would not be allowed to provide TikTok in the US as of January 2025, according to US law.
TikTok stated in the lawsuit that it was «simply not possible: not legally, not technologically, and not commercially.» And most definitely not within the Act’s stipulated 270-day window.»
TikTok has already said that it intended to challenge the law in court.
