- Written by Bernd Debsmann Jr.
- BBC News, Washington
image source, Getty Images
After the bill passed in the House, TikTok content creators staged a small protest outside the White House.
China has accused TikTok of “unfairly” acting like a “bandit” and attacked a bill moving through Congress that could eventually ban TikTok in the United States.
The House-passed bill gives TikTok's parent company six months to exit the company or face a ban on the app.
It still faces a tough battle in the Senate, but President Joe Biden has said he will sign it if it passes Congress.
The Chinese government vowed to take “necessary measures” to protect its interests.
TikTok is owned by Chinese company ByteDance, based in Beijing and registered in the Cayman Islands.
U.S. lawmakers have expressed concerns about the app, saying it poses a national security risk because Americans' data could end up in the hands of China. TikTok's owners reject these accusations.
On Wednesday, in an unusual show of bipartisanship, the House voted to pass the bill, with 352 members voting for it and 65 voting against it.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a press conference in Beijing on Thursday that the bill's vote “goes against the principles of fair competition and justice.”
“Seeing something good that someone else has and trying to make it your own is completely the logic of a thief,” Wang added.
Another Chinese official, Commerce Ministry spokesperson He Yadong, said China would “take all necessary measures to protect our legitimate rights and interests.”
It's unclear whether the bill has enough support to pass the U.S. Senate. It is also possible that the bill never gets a vote and the status quo remains in place.
Republican Donald Trump previously supported a ban but said he now opposes it.
After the House passed, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said the bill would take “billions of dollars out of the pockets of creators and small businesses.”
“It will also put over 300,000 American jobs at risk and take away your TikTok,” Chu said in a video posted on TikTok and X (formerly known as Twitter). mentioned in.
On Wednesday, several TikTok “creators” told the BBC they feared their livelihoods and businesses would be threatened if the bill became law.
“I buy items from small businesses and feature them on my platform. I enhance them,” said the Alabama-based creator, who has more than 12 million followers on the platform. , Ophelia Nichols said. “It's the small businesses that are going to suffer…that's what we have to worry about.”
TikTok's Chu also urged users to voice their opposition to the vote and contact their legislators. Some lawmakers' offices have already been flooded with calls from angry constituents.
WATCH: How do young Americans feel about the TikTok ban?
This approach has frustrated U.S. lawmakers. Texas Republican Chip Roy, one of the bill's co-sponsors, said in an interview with the BBC that he believes TikTok “shot itself in the foot” with its lobbying efforts.
”[That is] “It shows that they want to use the power of technology to persuade people and communicate information through their perspective,” he said, adding that the effort “is a propaganda angle that we're seeing from TikTok.” It was added that it is equivalent to
TikTok, along with other social media platforms, is banned in China.
Instead, users in China use a similar app, Douyin, which is only available in China and is subject to government surveillance and censorship.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Canadian government revealed that a national security review of TikTok's expansion plans in the country, which began secretly in September, is underway.
Speaking to reporters in Ottawa, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declined to comment on the review or say whether Canada is considering a ban similar to the one proposed in the United States.
“Obviously we're watching the discussions that are happening in the United States,” he told reporters.
Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Thursday that he is assembling a team of investors to buy TikTok.
“This is a great business,” he told broadcaster CNBC, adding that it would be owned by an American company.
“There's no way China would let an American company own something like this in China,” he added.
Canadian businessman Kevin O'Leary, one of the stars of the TV show “Shark Tank,” also said he was interested in buying the company.
When the Trump administration ordered the sale in 2020, several of the largest U.S. companies came forward to consider bids, and the company was reportedly valued at around $50 billion at the time.
Microsoft ultimately lost out to a team that included Walmart and software giant Oracle. The deal fell apart amid legal issues and the transition to a new government.
Today, TikTok's reach and ad revenue have increased significantly, and its valuation is estimated at $268 billion.
