US flags are seen near a TikTok logo in this illustration photo taken July 16, 2020 REUTERS / Florence Lo / Illustration – RC25UH9GTBNF
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A US judge said on Tuesday he would hold a Nov 4 hearing on whether to allow the US government to ban transactions with TikTok, a move the sharing app Chinese-owned short videos warned would effectively ban its use in the US
US District Judge Carl Nichols in Washington issued a preliminary injunction on Sept. 27 that struck out the US Commerce Department asked Apple Inc’s Google app stores and Alphabet Inc remove TikTok for download by new users
Nichols must now decide to block other aspects of the Commerce Department order which is due to go into effect Nov. 12 Nichols’ new hearing is scheduled a day after the presidential election
Discussions are underway to finalize a preliminary deal allowing Walmart Inc and Oracle Corp to take stakes in a new company, TikTok Global, which would oversee US operations President Donald Trump said last month that the accord had its « blessing »
Key terms of the deal, including who will hold a majority, are in dispute TikTok owner ByteDance has also said any deal will require approval from China, and Beijing has revised its list of submitted technologies export bans, in a way that gives it a say in any TikTok deal
The Trump administration argues that TikTok poses national security concerns, as personal data collected from 100 million Americans who use the app could be obtained by the Chinese government
Any agreement is subject to review by the US Governmental Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) This panel could also decide to block the use of the application in the United States
Separately, the Justice Department appealed the 19 preliminary joinder issued by US Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler to the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals The injunction blocked the US Order from the Department of Commerce, which would ban also other US transactions with Tencent Holding’s WeChat, potentially rendering the application unusable in the US
According to a calendar published by the court, no decision on request is likely before the end of November at the earliest
TikTok, ByteDance, China, Donald Trump
News from around the world – GB – US Judge to hold hearing on November 4 on Commerce Department’s TikTok ban
SOURCE: https://www.w24news.com
