US judge puts TikTok ban on hold in the state of Montana
The first ban on the popular video app TikTok in a US state has been put on hold by a court. The judge found that an injunction against the corresponding law in the state of Montana was justified. The law, which was passed in May, most likely violates the US Constitution, he explained his decision on Thursday.
This means that the law cannot come into force until the lawsuits against it have been decided. The bill signed by Governor Greg Gianforte was intended to prohibit download platforms from offering the app from January 1, 2024. The reason given was to protect the personal data of Montana residents from the Chinese Communist Party. TikTok users and the company took the law to court.
Judge Donald Molloy sees a high probability that they will prevail with the argument that a ban on the app violates the right to freedom of expression guaranteed by the constitution. A few years ago, an action by then US President Donald Trump against TikTok failed on similar grounds.
TikTok is the only successful online platform in the West that does not originate from the USA. There are concerns, particularly in the USA but also in Europe, that the app could be misused by Chinese authorities to collect information about users. Governments in several countries and the EU Commission have banned the use of TikTok on service cell phones.
TikTok always rejects concerns and emphasizes that it does not see itself as a subsidiary of a Chinese company. Bytedance is 60 percent owned by Western investors. The company is based in the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean. Critics counter that the Chinese founders hold a 20 percent stake thanks to higher voting rights and that Bytedance has a large headquarters in Beijing.
The government's prohibition of TikTok in Montana, aimed at protecting user data, is currently suspended due to potential constitutional violations. This suspension follows a US judge's decision that an injunction against the law was justified, as a ban on TikTok could infringe on the constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of expression.
Source: www.dpa.com
