US Court Decision On TikTok Ban In Montana Awaited

TikTok is used by more than a third of Montana residents (photo: Doc. Pixabay)

JAKARTA - A judge in the US listened to arguments regarding the ban on the use of the short video sharing app TikTok which was first handed down by the state of Montana. The ban is scheduled to take effect on January 1.

US District Judge Donald Molloy has listened to arguments from TikTok and users of the app who have filed a lawsuit against the state's legislative-approved ban.

At the time of the trial, Judge Molloy asked the Montana state attorney general's office about the irregularities of the move. "Does that feel a little strange to you?" asked Molloy in an hour-long trial in Missoula, Montana, quoted by Reuters.

TikTok, which is owned by ByteDance from China, filed a lawsuit in May to block the ban for various reasons. One of them is violating the right to free speech protected by First Amendment to companies and users. Separate lawsuits have been filed by TikTok users in Montana.

With more than 150 million users in the US, TikTok is used by more than a third of the Montana population, according to the company's statement.

Judge Molloy, appointed by Democratic President Bill Clinton, also questioned the Montana state's argument that this ban was needed to protect TikTok's user data in the state and questioned whether the state was "paternalistic".

"Everyone on TikTok voluntarily provides their personal data. So if they want to provide that information to any platform, how can you protect them?" asked Molloy.

He argues that the state is saying, "These people don't know what they're doing. They're exposed to the Chinese military. So we need to say 'forbid TikTok residents to exercise certain individual rights.'"

Meanwhile Molloy said he would make a decision as soon as possible.

Montana's Attorney General, Christian Corypta, said the state often acts alone and cites California's latest restrictions on food additives. "Just because one state is the first to do something, that doesn't mean it doesn't go hand in hand," Coatur said.

Cobar juga berpendapat bahwa negara bagian bisa bertindak bahkan jika konsumen memberikan data secara revolati, dibandingkan dengan penduduk yang menggunakan situs judi olahraga luar negeri yang memberikan risiko penduduk kehilangan nomor kredit mereka.

TikTok's lawyer, Alexander Berenaut, said during the trial that the Montana ban violated First Amendment and was also carried out in violation of federal law as states tried to "issue foreign policy to the state of Montana" - which is a matter under the federal government.

On Tuesday, October 10, Utah sued TikTok, accusing the company of harming children of deliberately making young users spend too long on the short video sharing platform. This lawsuit is similar to the legal action filed by Indiana and Arkansas.