US TikTok ban would be a blow to businesses relying on popular video app to build audiences
Some industry watchers believe a ban would also undermine free speech and expand government surveillance.

WASHINGTON DC: About 10 per cent of real estate agent Joseph Himali’s revenue comes from TikTok referrals alone.
His “Best Address” TikTok account has a massive following of almost 100,000 users.
“What I found is that people who are interested in the same things I’m interested in follow me,” said Mr Himali.
“Now, I’ve actually got business from my followers who say ‘I’m looking for a luxury property, and you do that kind of work’, and they know me, like me and trust me from having watched me so much on TikTok. Then they call to have me act as their agent when they buy or sell a home.”
But a likely ban could hit Mr Himali and the rest of TikTok’s 150 million active users – and 5 million businesses – in the United States.
The United States Congress is moving unanimously towards passing a bill that would in effect ban TikTok on security grounds, with lawmakers and even the FBI director accusing the social media platform of being “within the control of the Chinese government”.
TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, is already prohibited on federally-issued electronic devices.
BANNING TIKTOK DUE TO SECURITY CONCERNS
A bipartisan group of a dozen senators has proposed legislation, supported by the White House, which would give the administration new powers to limit foreign-based technologies if they pose a danger to national security.
While the RESTRICT Act does not cite TikTok by name, senators who introduced the bill have repeatedly pointed to their concerns that user data on the app could fall into the wrong hands.

Meanwhile, some TikTok influencers are protesting against the move.
“A TikTok ban wouldn't just put my business at risk,” said TikTok creator Callie Goodwin. “95 per cent of my livelihood would disappear overnight, along with this entire community of creators and customers that I have built over the platform.”
TikTok's chief executive officer Chew Shou Zi, who appeared before Congress to defend the app against accusations of spying, has reassured lawmakers that TikTok is no different from US technology giants.
“We are the only company that offers this level of transparency. Now, trust is about actions we take. We have to earn their trust with decisions we make for our company and our products,” said Mr Chew.
“The potential security, privacy manipulation concerns raised about TikTok are really not unique to us. The same issues applied to other companies. We believe what’s needed are clear, transparent rules that apply broadly to all tech companies.”
A BAN WOULD UNDERMINE FREE SPEECH
Yet Washington may have already made up its mind, said observers.

Some industry watchers believe a ban would undermine free speech and expand government surveillance.
“This would be an unprecedented use of executive authority over the internet as we know it, and it would be a real threat to free expression and to internet openness going forward,” said Mr Albert Fox Cahn, executive director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project.
“We’ve never seen companies being targeted in this way, to this degree, by those at the highest levels of government. I think it’s quite frankly unconstitutional, and any ban is likely to be challenged in the courts, and I’d be skeptical over whether the Biden administration would win.”
There is also the question over how such a ban would be enforced, or whether TikTok could avoid one by splitting with ByteDance, said observers, adding that the app’s high profile amid deepening tensions between the US and China could be its downfall.