TikTok Faces US Ban Threat, Lawmakers Demand App Store Removal

Two significant US politicians, including an Indian-American representative, have demanded that Google and Apple eliminate TikTok from their app stores. This comes ahead of a crucial deadline that could result in a nationwide ban on the video-sharing platform.

This law mandates that TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, either sells the app or faces a US ban.

On Friday, the head and a key member of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party sent letters to Apple CEO Tim Cook, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and TikTok CEO Shou Chew. They urged Cook and Pichai to prepare for TikTok's removal by the January 19th deadline. In their letter to Chew, they demanded the "immediate sale" of the app.

This action follows a court ruling upholding the law that protects Americans from foreign-controlled apps.

The politicians emphasized in their letters to Pichai & Cook that Congress has given TikTok sufficient time—over 230 days—to be in compliance with the law and take the necessary steps to sell the app. They stated, "Without a sale, the law prohibits companies like yours from providing services to distribute, maintain, or update foreign-controlled apps.Under US law, Apple and Google must ensure full compliance with these requirements by January 19, 2025."