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US House passes bill forcing ByteDance to divest TikTok or face ban

today13 March 2024

Background


The White House’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan said yesterday that the goal was ending Chinese ownership, not banning TikTok. (AP pic)

WASHINGTON: The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill today that would give TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to divest the US assets of the short-video app used by about 170 million Americans or face a ban.

The bill passed 352-65, with bipartisan support, but it faces a more uncertain path in the Senate where some favour a different approach to regulating foreign-owned apps that could pose security concerns. Democratic Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer has not indicated how he plans to proceed.