Will TikTok be banned this month?
These are pressing questions that are leaving creators and small business owners anxious as they await decisions that could upend their livelihoods. The fate of the popular app will be decided by the Supreme Court, which will hear arguments on Jan. 10 over a law that would require TikTok to cut ties with its China-based parent company, ByteDance, or face a U.S. ban. It will.
At the heart of the case is whether the law violates the First Amendment, along with TikTok and its creator allies. The U.S. government, which views the platform as a national security risk, says otherwise.
For creators, the TikTok doomsday scenario is nothing new after President-elect Donald Trump attempted to ban the platform via executive order during his first term. But the possibility of a ban has never been more immediate than it is now, with the Supreme Court acting as the final arbiter, despite Trump’s recent statement that he now wants TikTok to remain in place.
If the government wins, as it did in lower courts, TikTok said it would shut down its U.S. platform by Jan. 19, leaving creators scrambling to redefine their futures.
“A lot of my other creative friends are all terrified. But I am keeping calm.” said Gillian Johnson, who has benefited financially from TikTok’s live feature and rewards program. The program helped creators generate higher earning potential by publishing high-quality, original content. The 22-year-old filmmaker and recent college graduate used her TikTok earnings to direct her short films ‘Gambit’ and ‘Awaken!’ “My neighbor.”
Johnson said the idea of TikTok disappearing is “difficult to accept.”
Many creators have taken to TikTok to express their displeasure as they contemplate the possibility that the platform they invested heavily in will soon disappear. Online communities risk being disrupted, and the economic fallout could be devastating, especially for those who rely heavily on TikTok and have left full-time jobs to build careers and incomes around content.
For some, the uncertainty has led to questions about whether to continue creating content, according to Johnson, who says he knows creators who are thinking about quitting. But Nicla Bartoli, vice president of sales at The Influencer Marketing Factory, said creators she interacted with weren’t overly concerned, as news of a potential TikTok ban had come and gone repeatedly over the years.
“I think a lot of people think that’s not going to happen,” said Bartoli, whose agency connects influencers with brands.
It’s unclear how quickly the Supreme Court will issue a decision. However, the court can quickly block the law from taking effect if at least five of the nine Supreme Court justices decide that it is unconstitutional.
President Trump has already asked judges to temporarily suspend the ban so he can make his own decisions after taking office. In a brief summary of his nomination for attorney general, Trump called the TikTok ban “egregious and troubling” over First Amendment implications and said he wanted a “negotiated resolution” on the issue, which the Biden administration will pursue. But it was no use.
While waiting for the situation to stabilize in Washington, some creators are looking for alternative ways to promote themselves or their businesses, encouraging users to follow them on other social media platforms, or investing more time in creating non-TikTok content. there is.
Johnson said he is already strategizing his next move and exploring alternative opportunities. Although she didn’t find a place like TikTok, she started spending more time on other platforms like Instagram and YouTube. Both platforms are expected to benefit financially if TikTok disappears.
The so-called creator economy, fueled in part by TikTok, could be worth $480 billion by 2027, according to a report from Goldman Sachs.
Opportunities to monetize content exist across multiple platforms, so many creators have already diversified their social media presence. However, many TikTok creators credited the platform and its algorithm with giving them the type of exposure they couldn’t receive on other platforms. Some say this has provided opportunities and encouraged creators of color and other marginalized groups.
Industry analysts note that despite fears about TikTok’s fate, creators are generally avoiding big changes like abandoning the platform until something actually happens.
“I’m anxious, but in a strange way, I’m trying to be hopeful,” said Brandon Hurst, who credits TikTok with rescuing his business from obscurity and leading it to rapid growth.
Hearst, 30, who sells plants, said his sales doubled within a year of joining TikTok. This surpassed the traction he was trying to get on Instagram. He gained customers through TikTok’s live feature, which helped him sell more than 77,000 plants. The business has prospered so much that she now employs five employees, including her husband and mother.
“For me, this was the only way to do business,” Hearst said.
Billion Dollar Boy, a New York-based influencer marketing agency, advised creators to download all TikTok content into a personal portfolio. This is especially important for those who primarily post on the platform, said Edward East, the group’s founder and founder. CEO. This will help you quickly build an audience elsewhere. It can also serve as a resume for brands interested in partnering with them to advertise their products, East said.
But until the Jan. 19 deadline approaches, East said creators should continue to post regularly on TikTok, which has 170 million U.S. users each month and is very effective at reaching that audience.
If the Supreme Court does not delay the ban as President Trump requested, app stores and Internet service providers will have to stop offering TikTok services by January 19. You won’t be able to download it. TikTok users will still have access, but the ban, which prevents app updates, will eventually render the app “inoperable,” the Justice Department said.
TikTok said in court documents that it estimates the platform will lose about a third of its daily users in the U.S. due to the month-long shutdown. Judges decide whether to put the brakes on laws that face challenges. Within three weeks, Americans will find out whether the Supreme Court agrees.
