On Wednesday, U.S. TikTok users were flooded with disappointment, denial, and confusion when they heard that Chinese owner ByteDance planned to shut off the app for its 170 million U.S. users by Sunday, seemingly abandoning efforts to keep the popular video-sharing platform going.
Reuters reports that users who have amassed followings and careers on the app hoped for months that TikTok would find a way to avoid a U.S. ban passed into law in 2023. But resignation and anger have begun, with Jan. 19 just a few days away.
“TikTok signalling that white flag is very discouraging and very sad,” said Joonsuk Shin, 28, a research manager and content creator based in New York.
Some users called for a boycott of apps owned by Meta Platforms, such as Instagram and Facebook, and X, owned by Elon Musk. These apps are expected to attract advertisers who frequently use TikTok.
“We all need to delete our Facebook, X and Instagram accounts that same day,” one user said.
ByteDance was given until Jan. 19 to sell TikTok’s U.S. assets or face a U.S. ban. This follows lawmakers’ concerns that the app poses national security risks because China could compel the company to share the data of its U.S. users. TikTok has denied that it has or ever will share U.S. user data.
TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, have sought to delay the law’s implementation, which they say violates the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protection against government abridgement of free speech.
Unless the U.S. Supreme Court decides to halt the ban, people attempting to open the app on Sunday will see a pop-up message directing them to a website with information about the shutdown.
TikTok user Amber Goode, 28, an actual crime content creator from Colorado Springs, Colorado, complained about waiting for the Supreme Court to decide on the fate of the beloved app.
“Why are they playing with us?” Goode said. “I feel like the government is avoiding giving us the answer they already know.”
