TikTok planning complete US shutdown as ban deadline looms, reports say | Technology

Popular video-sharing platform preparing to go fully dark in the US from Sunday, reports say.

TikTok is planning to go fully dark in the United States if an expected ban takes effect on Sunday, media outlets have reported.

The popular video-sharing platform is preparing to completely shut down operations, instead of continuing the service for existing users, The Information and the Reuters news agency reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Under the scheduled ban, existing users would be legally able to continue using TikTok, but the app would become unusable over time as app stores and internet hosting services would be prohibited from providing updates.

Barring a last-minute reprieve, TikTok users will encounter a message redirecting them to a statement about the ban and options for downloading their personal data, the reports said.

TikTok did not immediately respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment.

Outgoing US President Joe Biden signed the related Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act in April, granting Chinese parent company ByteDance 270 days to sell the platform or see it banned.

Biden signed the bill amid bipartisan concerns that the platform could be used to hoover up Americans’ personal data and manipulate the public discourse.

The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that President-elect Donald Trump was considering issuing an executive order to suspend the ban for 60 to 90 days in order to buy time to negotiate a sale or an alternative arrangement.

Trump, who is set to be inaugurated on Monday, pledged to “save” the platform during his re-election campaign despite seeking to ban the app himself during his first term in office.

The reports come as the US Supreme Court is considering the constitutionality of the ban.

The nine-member court appears inclined towards upholding the law after a majority of justices last week expressed scepticism about TikTok’s argument that the ban violates Americans’ free speech rights.