Beijing, Mar 14 (EFE).- TikTok CEO Shou Chew on Thursday expressed his intention to fight against the “disappointing” vote in the United States House of Representatives that could pave the way for a ban of the hugely popular app in the country.
In a video posted on the TikTok Policy account of social media platform X, Shou said that the bill would lead to a ban of the app in the US and give “more power to a handful of other social media companies.”
The CEO argued that the possible ban of the app, owned by China’s ByteDance, would “take billions of dollars out of the pockets of creators and small businesses” and put “more than 300,000 American jobs at risk.”
“We know how important TikTok is to all of you,” said the Singaporean executive.
“We will not stop fighting and advocating for you and we will continue to do all we can, including exercising our legal rights,” he said.
“I encourage you to share your stories, share them with your friends, share them with your family, share them with your Senators. Protect your constitutional rights. Make your voices heard,” he concluded.
On Wednesday, the US House of Representatives approved a bill that would force TikTok to dissociate itself from its parent company in China within 165 days or be banned in the US.
The measure received strong bipartisan support, with 352 votes in favor and 65 against.
Critics of TikTok argue that the platform poses a national security threat due to the possibility of the Chinese government accessing user data.
TikTok has denied these accusations and has said that it has never shared user data with the Chinese government.
The final decision on banning the app will rest with the Senate, where it is not yet clear whether the legislation will be considered.
The Chinese government on Wednesday accused the US of adopting intimidation tactics.
“Such practice of resorting to hegemonic moves when one could not succeed in fair competition disrupts the normal operation of businesses, undermines the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, sabotages the normal economic and trade order in the world and will eventually backfire on the US itself,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said. EFE
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