Let’s be honest: a while back, the threat of TikTok being shut down didn’t really phase us because we didn’t believe it. Today, it all hits a bit different as we approach the January 19th deadline with no signs of a “just kidding” on the rise. ByteDance, the China-based parent company of the wildly popular social media platform, must sell to an American buyer or it’ll be banned in the United States. Ironically, as much as President Donald Trump has expressed his distaste for China, he is working on a plan that could potential delay the process of the ban. According to CNN, the potential move would allow TikTok’s nearly 170 million American users to continue their use of the app for a certain period of time as the administration searches for a buyer. As of today, the Supreme Court has upheld the ban and the law to enforce it may happen this Sunday.
Popular YouTuber Mr. Beast (real name James Donaldson) recently posted to his X account, “Okay fine, I’ll buy TikTok so it doesn’t get banned.” This posses a very possible opportunity as he has the capital to make such a purchase happen. Whether you use the app to create content, have built a following for your business, or simply to scroll aimlessly for hours, it is without a doubt that TikTok has grown to become much more than a social media app. Let’s take a deeper dive into many ways we are impacted and some alternatives to get our semi-TikTok fix.
Ever since it was launched in 2016, TikTok has been a force to be reckoned with. Some could easily argue that it wasn’t until Covid hit in 2020 that the app grew tremendously as we were all confined to our homes with very little pastime options. It feels like a countdown to a drastic change if the app were to indeed get banned — with all signs pointing to yes. With so many people invested in saving the app, it seems hard to really digest the idea of it being gone forever. A period of a few weeks seems reasonable, with maybe TikTok not being accessible on the app market.
However, it’s hard to think of all the millions of videos just disappearing out of thin air as many have worked to build their profiles and content for years. Quite a bit of content creators have found ways to monetize their videos, even going as far as signing brand deals and full blown careers out of the social media platform. What was once mainly a place for trendy dances and funny voiceovers has now grown to be much more, with a source of income and visibility being two of the main attractions.
Sure, January 19th is right around the corner, but the power behind saving TikTok is heavy. On the opposing side, the Supreme Court is ready to uphold the decision regardless of the arguments to save it. The best decision is a win-win for both ByteDance and the public if they simply just sell the app. The company makes a bunch of money and their product it still accessible by millions. There truly isn’t a benefit to it not being sold, so much confusion lies there. In true American fashion, some have found alternatives to post their content.
China-based company RedNote and Lemon8 have already started popping up on peoples radars, with Lemon8 being a sister company to TikTok and users actively pushing their followers that way. Reels on Instagram has seen an increase over the years, so this would offer a smooth transition since most TikTok users also have IG accounts as well. Your favorite TikTokers are scrambling to get their content saved and moved over to the alternatives just in case the ban is pushed through and solidified. Another argument in question is the sad reality of how much people have invested into the app and how devastating it may be to start over with many using the income to support their families with the many opportunities that have risen from the platform.
So what happens on January 19th? Well, Google and Apple have been notified that they would need to remove it from their app stores immediately, but it won’t automatically take it off our phones. So sure, we will still access to it, but where the issue comes into play is the fact updates will no longer be pushed out to us. Often times, bugs arise and are fixed in the backend for us, but this will longer be the case. To make matters worse, security for the app will no longer be available so it could be dangerous to use it as it posses an easy way for hackers to get through to millions of devices.
All in all, the ban looks imminent. But with so many hands in the jar, it doesn’t realistically seem like it’ll last for long. My best guess is a few weeks at most, with people like Trump and Mr. Beast having some influence to keep it around longer. If it’s solely a matter of money, then I guess capitalism will save us. The real problem lies if ByteDance simply refuses to sell which is also a possibility, but money talks so only time will tell!