- US lawmakers are again introducing a bill in the House of Representatives to try to ban TikTok.
- According to the Wall Street Journal, TikTok's leaders did not expect the new bill to move forward so quickly.
- Former Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has expressed interest in acquiring the social media app.
A bill to ban TikTok in the United States is moving quickly through Congress, catching social media platforms by surprise, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The new bill, proposed by Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin and Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthy of Illinois, would force Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok to non-Chinese owners. If so, it would face a ban on sales in the United States.
TikTok leaders had been tracking the bill but did not expect it to pass the House so quickly, people familiar with the matter told the Journal. The bill went to a vote Thursday in the House Energy and Commerce Committee and was approved unanimously.
The House is scheduled to vote on the bill on Wednesday.
If passed, it would advance to the Senate and move one step closer to President Joe Biden. Even though Biden has an account with the app himself, he indicated he would sign a ban if it landed on his desk.
The president joined the app to connect with voters, but his stance could backfire. An Associated Press poll found that 73% of people who use the app at least once a day oppose the ban.
TikTok spokesperson told Business Insider that the bill had a “predetermined outcome” and that he expected it to pass.
“The government is attempting to strip 170 million Americans of their constitutional right to free expression,” the company told BI in a statement. “This will harm millions of businesses, deny audiences to artists, and destroy the livelihoods of countless creators across the country.”
Unlikely characters trying to save TikTok
It is unclear whether this bill will pass the Senate, as Republicans hope. Senators like Rand Paul and Lindsey Graham have expressed concerns about this. Others, including former President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, have weighed in as well, voicing their opposition to banning TikTok.
“I don't think we should ban corporate ownership just because we don't like the various governments and some countries involved,” Paul told the Journal on Friday.
While Democrats have largely supported banning TikTok so far, some lawmakers have argued that data privacy laws should focus on other tech giants like Meta and Google.
“This is the reality,” Sen. Ed Markey said in a statement last year. “We're missing out on the TikTok tree instead.”
Meanwhile, American business leaders are considering the idea of purchasing the app. Citing sources, the paper said former Activision CEO Bobby Kotick approached ByteDance co-founder Zhang Yiming about acquiring the app.
Another anonymous source cited by the magazine said Kotick pitched the idea to a group that included OpenAI's Sam Altman.
Representatives for Kotick, OpenAI, ByteDance and TikTok did not immediately respond to requests for comment sent by BI outside of normal business hours.
The move to ban TikTok in the United States has been driven by lawmakers who believe TikTok hands over user data to the Chinese government. So far, TikTok has said it will not comply with requests.
In response to the House bill, TikTok went on the offensive, urging users to contact their legislators to let them know they oppose the bill.
