“TRUMP LIFELINE”
“Donald Trump could be a lifeline for TikTok once he takes office, but halting the enforcement of the ban is easier said than done,” said Emarketer lead Analyst Jasmine Enberg.
“And even if he does manage to save TikTok, he’s already flip-flopped on his stance toward the app and there’s no guarantee he won’t go after it later.”
The president-elect launched his own TikTok account in June, gaining 14.6 million followers, but has not posted since Election Day.
Despite the uncertainty, TikTok’s presence in the United States continues to grow.
The platform reported US$100 million in Black Friday sales for its new shopping venture, and Emarketer projects US ad revenue will reach US$15.5 billion next year, accounting for 4.5 per cent of total digital ad spending in the country.
But Enberg warned a ban would significantly disrupt the social media landscape, benefiting Meta, YouTube and Snap while harming content creators and small businesses dependent on TikTok.
Gautam Hans, professor at Cornell Law School, said the judges treated the government’s national security argument “with great deference … while undervaluing the radical effects this unfortunate decision will have for individual speakers and First Amendment doctrine”.
But given the unanimous ruling and the short timeline before the law’s date of taking effect, it was “unlikely that the Supreme Court will take the case, which will almost certainly lead to TikTok’s demise in just a handful of weeks”, he added.
In contrast, Carl Tobias, of the University of Richmond, said that given the “critical implications” of the issues in question – national security and free speech – the apex court would likely take the case.
Source: CNA
