Is TikTok Really Banned?

The Situation:

On Tuesday, December 13, a trio of lawmakers introduced new legislation to ban TikTok from operating in the United States. Spearheaded by Senator Marco Rubio, the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee proposed legislation that would “block and prohibit all transactions” in the U.S. by social media companies with at least 1 million monthly users that are based in—or under the substantial influence of—countries that are considered foreign adversaries.

The main concern is centered around the potential sharing of consumer user data with the Chinese government, and if the bill should pass, the legislators behind it hope to “protect Americans from the threat posed by certain foreign adversaries using current or potential future social media companies that those foreign adversaries control to surveil Americans, learn sensitive data about Americans, or spread influence campaigns, propaganda, and censorship.” It’s too early to predict whether the bill will pass through both bodies of Congress.

We’re already seeing Maryland, South Carolina and South Dakota remove access to TikTok on government devices, with some having had TikTok banned on government devices for years, as this concern has been ongoing since 2020. However, at the same time, U.S. consumers continue to show their support by consistently uploading content and engaging with TikTok at high rates, despite U.S. government concerns.

Interestingly, China instilled a similar ban in 2012, eliminating citizens’ access to Google, Facebook, Instagram and more. Ultimately, it’s virtually impossible to ‘ban’ anything on the internet, especially given the U.S. has no formal architecture for doing so (unlike China). Despite this, the government can make accessing TikTok incredibly inconvenient, resulting in users choosing to migrate to other preferred platforms such as Meta Reels and YouTube Shorts or some soon-to-come platform.

What it Means for You:

Right now, it’s still very much wait and see. The platform has no doubt grown exponentially with massive engagement, particularly from Gen Z, who we do not expect to let go quietly. At the same time, this move from Rubio could be a ploy to drive faster action from TikTok’s parent company ByteDance to adhere to FBI security requests as it relates to U.S. data privacy. Either way, we will be keeping a close eye and do not recommend pausing or shifting strategy at this time. However, if any concerns arise, our team is here and happy to consult as it relates to this news.

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