Lawmakers press Apple and Google to prepare to apply ban on TikTok next month

Apple and Google are facing pressure from influential House lawmakers to prepare to enforce the U.S. government’s looming ban on the popular social media app TikTok, which is set to take effect next month.

The China-founded app lost an important legal battle earlier this month when a federal court upheld the constitutionality of the federal law conditionally banning TikTok if its American subsidiary did not separate itself from China-based owner ByteDance. TikTok protested that the ban was an unconstitutional restriction on free speech and that the law unfairly targeted a single company for punishment.

Following the ruling, the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party’s leadership wants to ensure there is no delay in the crackdown on TikTok set to take effect on Jan. 19, one day before President-elect Trump takes office.

Reps. John Moolenaar, Michigan Republican, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, Illinois Democrat, wrote to Apple and Google’s CEOs on Friday demanding the Big Tech companies comply with the ban.

The Republican chairman and his Democratic colleague told Apple and Google the law signed earlier this year by President Biden requires them not to enable the distribution, maintenance or updating of any foreign adversary-controlled application via means of their app stores.

“Under U.S. law, Apple must take the necessary steps to ensure it can fully comply with this requirement by January 19, 2025,” said the lawmakers’ letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook.

Both companies are expected to comply and reportedly began discussing long ago how to do so given the popularity of the app, which has been downloaded billions of times and has over 150 million American users, according to public estimates.

Beyond restricting the distribution of the app through their individual app stores, Apple and Google also face the problem of users attempting to maintain access to TikTok via “sideloading,” or installing apps to devices outside of the companies’ app stores.

A ban on TikTok is also not guaranteed just yet. Earlier last week, TikTok requested a federal appeals court prevent the ban from taking effect while the company’s appeal of the court’s ruling is considered by the U.S. Supreme Court.

If the federal judiciary does not intervene, Mr. Biden could postpone the crackdown temporarily. The president can delay the restrictions on TikTok for 90 days as the app works toward a qualified divestiture, as the House lawmakers told Apple and Google.

Mr. Biden, however, is unlikely to rescue the app and his administration is pursuing the restrictions. The Justice Department reportedly asked a federal appeals court earlier this week to shoot down TikTok’s request for a delay of the looming ban.

President-elect Donald Trump appears more favorable to saving TikTok. While he attempted to crush the app during his first term in office, he campaigned for the White House this year with a message in support of keeping it online.

TikTok can also escape the crackdown by separating itself from its China-based ownership, but the company insists that is not feasible.

Alongside their letters to Apple and Google on Friday, Mr. Moolenaar and Mr. Krishnamoorthi wrote to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and urged his company to “immediately execute a qualified divestiture.”

Apple, Google and TikTok did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday.