According to social media expert Daniel Paris, the announcement is expected.
– Tiktok has said that it will “go dark” on Sunday. It will not be able to update for the US users. It won’t disappear from the phone, but it won’t be possible to use the app, so it will gradually be dismantled, he says.
About 170 million Americans reportedly use the app.
– We will see what they will do with all this time. People are incredibly passionate about this app, they love it,” says Paris.
Pehrson: Sweden must follow suit
The Liberals’ Johan Pehrson writes in a post on X that he thinks Sweden and Europe must follow the USA’s line and calls Tiktok “the Chinese spy app”.
“Now it looks like the US is banning Tiktok. The Chinese spy app that bewitched a generation will be forced out of China’s hands. Good. But Sweden and Europe must follow suit. If Tiktok doesn’t cut ties with China – then we have to ban the app here too,” he writes.
Must sell to new owner
The court in Washington has previously said that the Tiktok issue is fast-tracked.
A deadline for China’s Bytedance to sell Tiktok to a US owner expires on Sunday. Otherwise, the service is to be banned, due to security concerns surrounding the platform’s ties to China’s dictatorial regime.
The background is that Tiktok is accused of giving China an opportunity to spy on the 170 million American users and collect information about them. The US also considers Tiktok to be a channel for spreading propaganda, which Bytedance has denied.
Under the law dealing with the ban, service providers such as Google and Apple could be penalized if they continue to offer Tiktok after the deadline expires on Sunday.
Trump: Let’s see what I’ll do
Both outgoing President Joe Biden and incoming President Donald Trump have signaled that they will not immediately implement the ban. On the other hand, Tiktok has said that the popular service may still be shut down.
Tiktok’s fate is now in the hands of Trump, who is sworn in on Monday – a day after the deadline expired.
– In the end, it’s up to me, so you’ll see what I’ll do, he says in an interview with CNN.
When asked whether he will try to lift the ban, he says that he will make the decision.
– Congress has given me the decision, so I will take it, he says.
Have spoken to Xi Jinping
On his social media platform Truth Social, Trump writes that you need time to “consider the situation, TT reports.
“My decision about Tiktok will be made in the not too distant future,” he writes.
Trump stated earlier on Friday that he discussed, among other things, the issue of Tiktok in a telephone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping.