What is preventing ByteDance from selling TikTok to US businesses?

Last Tuesday, ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, filed a lawsuit against the United States in response to the country seeking to ban the platform. The Chinese-based company called the ban unconstitutional and stated that selling the platform is not possible, warning that it would lead to closure before January 19, 2025.

In the legal filing, TikTok argued that Congress had enacted a law for the first time in history that would permanently ban a single named speech platform and prohibit all Americans from participating in a global online community with millions of users worldwide. This lawsuit comes after President Joe Biden signed a law requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok to American companies to avoid the ban.

The ban on TikTok is due to the US government having security concerns about the platform’s data collection practices and the potential for misuse of information for the benefit of the Chinese government. TikTok has denied these accusations multiple times, stating that the concerns are hypothetical without specific evidence to support them.

ByteDance explained in the lawsuit that selling TikTok to American companies is not feasible because it would require transferring millions of lines of code to the new owner, and the Chinese government would not allow the sale of TikTok with the original algorithm created by the parent company. The company argued that the ban would create a separate experience for US users compared to the rest of the world, essentially isolating the US version of the platform.

TikTok is seeking a court ruling that the Biden administration violated the United States Constitution with the ban on the platform. The lawsuit highlights the ongoing legal battle between the Chinese-owned company and the US government over national security concerns related to TikTok.