US Lawmakers Urge Google, Apple to Prepare for TikTok Ban Amid National Security Concerns
U.S. lawmakers urge Google and Apple to prepare for TikTok’s removal from app stores by January 19, 2025, citing national security concerns tied to its China-based parent company, ByteDance.
Two prominent U.S. lawmakers, including Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, have urged tech giants Google and Apple to remove TikTok from their app stores as the video-sharing platform faces a potential ban next month. The demand follows a law signed by President Joe Biden in April, which mandates TikTok’s parent company, China-based ByteDance, to divest from the app by January 19, 2025, to avoid a nationwide ban.
House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Chair John Moolenaar and Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi sent formal letters on Friday to Apple CEO Tim Cook, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and TikTok CEO Shou Chew. The lawmakers called on Cook and Pichai to prepare for the app’s removal from their platforms and urged TikTok’s leadership to immediately execute a "qualified divestiture" to comply with the law.
The letters come in the wake of a recent unanimous ruling by the DC Circuit Court, which upheld the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, paving the way for stricter regulations on apps linked to foreign entities.
In their letters to the tech CEOs, the lawmakers emphasized that Congress has provided TikTok with more than sufficient time—233 days and counting—to address the national security concerns posed by its ownership.
Under the new law, it will become illegal to provide services for distributing, maintaining, or updating foreign adversary-controlled applications through platforms accessible to U.S. users. This includes Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store.
The lawmakers wrote, “By January 19, 2025, Google and Apple must ensure compliance with the law and take all necessary steps to remove TikTok from their respective platforms if the divestiture has not been completed.”
This development intensifies pressure on ByteDance to divest from TikTok to avoid a complete ban, as national security concerns surrounding the app's Chinese ownership continue to grow.
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