TikTok has turned to the Supreme Court to overturn an impending ban in the US by blocking a law which will see the video-sharing app removed for millions.
TikTok, a subsidiary of Beijing-based ByteDance, on Monday said the January 19 ban would see it barred at a key political moment just as president-elect Donald Trump took office.
“The act will shutter one of America’s most popular speech platforms the day before a presidential inauguration,” TikTok said in a court filing.
“This, in turn, will silence the speech of applicants and the many Americans who use the platform to communicate about politics, commerce, arts, and other matters of public concern.”
ByteDance has been required to sell the platform or see it banned under the so-called Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act after the US Justice Department has cited national security concerns over the app.
TikTok had unsuccessfully attempted to get the law delayed through a request to the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia last week.
If successful, its latest bid to the Supreme Court would pave the way for justices to decide whether the law is constitutional.