Feed: Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics
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Title: The bill that could ban TikTok is barreling ahead

Date: Thu, 18 Apr 2024 23:05:18 +0000
Link: https://www.engadget.com/the-bill-that-could-...

The bill that could lead to a ban of TikTok in the United States appears to
be much closer to becoming law. The legislation sailed through the House of
Representatives last month, but faced an uncertain future in the Senate due
to opposition from a few prominent lawmakers.

But momentum for the ΓÇ£Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary
Controlled Applications ActΓÇ¥ seems to once again be growing. The House is
set to vote on a package of bills this weekend, which includes a slightly
revised version of the TikTok bill. In the latest version of the bill,
ByteDance would have up to 12 months to divest TikTok, instead of the six-
month period stipulated in the original measure.

That change, as NBC News notes, was apparently key to winning over support
from some skeptical members of the Senate, including Sen. Maria Cantwell,
chair of the Senate Commerce Committee. So with the House expected to pass
the revised bill Saturday ΓÇö itΓÇÖs part of a package that also includes aid
to Ukraine and Israel ΓÇö its path forward is starting to look much more
certain, with a Senate vote coming ΓÇ£as early as next week,ΓÇ¥ according to
NBC. President Joe Biden has said he would sign the bill if itΓÇÖs passed by
Congress.

If passed into law, TikTok (and potentially other apps "controlled by a
foreign adversary" and deemed to be a national security threat) would face a
ban in US app stores if it declined to sell to a new owner. TikTok CEO Shou
Chew has suggested the company would likely mount a legal challenge to the
law.

ΓÇ£It is unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of
important foreign and humanitarian assistance to once again jam through a ban
bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans,
devastate 7 million businesses, and shutter a platform that contributes $24
billion to the U.S. economy, annually,ΓÇ¥ TikTok said in a statement.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-
bill-that-could-ban-tiktok-is-barreling-ahead-230518984.html?src=rss

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