TikTok Asks Court to Block US Ban, Seeks US Supreme Court Hearing

TikTok has asked a U.S. appeals court to temporarily block a law requiring its parent company, ByteDance, to divest itself of the popular video sharing service, or face a U.S. ban.

TikTok 已请求美国上诉法院暂时阻止一项要求其母公司字节跳动剥离流行视频共享服务的法律，否则将面临美国禁令。

The legal request comes after the same federal appeals court last week upheld a law that forces ByteDance to sell TikTok by January 19 or face the ban. Lawyers for ByteDance and TikTok are seeking to temporarily block the law to give the U.S. Supreme Court a chance to rule on the case.

此前，该联邦上诉法院上周维持了一项法律，迫使字节跳动在 1 月 19 日之前出售 TikTok，否则将面临禁令。 字节跳动和 TikTok 的律师正在寻求暂时阻止该法律的实施，以便让美国最高法院有机会对此案作出裁决。

The companies said the Supreme Court had “an established historical record of protecting Americans' right to free speech.” They added their opinion that they expected the high court to “do just that on this important constitutional issue."

这些公司表示，最高法院“在保护美国人的言论自由权方面拥有悠久的历史记录”。 他们补充说，他们希望高等法院“在这个重要的宪法问题上这样做”。

In the legal request, the companies warned that, without court intervention, the law would take effect next month leading to the closure of TikTok in the U.S. They called the service, or app, “one of the nation’s most popular speech platforms,” noting it currently has more than 170 million monthly users in the U.S.

这些公司在法律请求中警告说，如果没有法院干预，该法律将于下个月生效，导致 TikTok 在美国关闭。他们称该服务或应用程序是“美国最受欢迎的语音平台之一”，并指出 目前，它在美国拥有超过 1.7 亿月度用户。

TikTok also warned that, if the law takes effect, it would affect “services for tens of millions of TikTok users outside the United States.”

TikTok还警告称，如果该法律生效，将影响“美国境外数千万TikTok用户的服务”。

The companies asked the appeals court to act on their request by December 16. They noted that President-elect Donald Trump has suggested he may try to prevent a U.S. ban on TikTok. Trump is set to take office on January 20.

这些公司要求上诉法院在 12 月 16 日之前按照他们的请求采取行动。他们指出，当选总统唐纳德·特朗普表示他可能会试图阻止美国对 TikTok 的禁令。 特朗普定于 1 月 20 日就职。

A temporary block on the law could “give the incoming administration time to determine its position,” they said. The new administration’s position, the companies argued, could make the Supreme Court hearing of the case unnecessary.

他们表示，暂时阻止该法律可能“让即将上任的政府有时间确定其立场”。 这些公司认为，新政府的立场可能会使最高法院没有必要审理此案。

Unless the Supreme Court rules, a decision about whether to delay the TikTok ban would rest with President Joe Biden. He could approve a 90-day extension past January 19. However, experts have noted it is not clear whether ByteDance could meet a series of requirements needed to permit an extension.

除非最高法院做出裁决，否则是否推迟 TikTok 禁令将由总统乔·拜登决定。 他可能会在 1 月 19 日之后批准延期 90 天。不过，专家指出，尚不清楚字节跳动是否能够满足允许延期所需的一系列要求。

U.S. officials have long warned that TikTok presents national security concerns. The government accuses ByteDance of sharing user data with China’s government. Critics have said China could also use TikTok to spread misinformation and that material published on the service can harm the mental health of young users.

美国官员长期以来一直警告称，TikTok 会带来国家安全担忧。 政府指责字节跳动与中国政府共享用户数据。 批评者表示，中国还可能利用 TikTok 传播错误信息，并且在该服务上发布的内容可能会损害年轻用户的心理健康。

TikTok has repeatedly denied the accusations.

TikTok 一再否认这些指控。

In its ruling, the appeals court recognized that “170 million Americans use TikTok to create and view all sorts of free expression.” However, it added that a divestment of the service from Chinese control was “essential to protect our national security.”

在裁决中，上诉法院承认“1.7 亿美国人使用 TikTok 来创建和查看各种自由表达”。 不过，它补充说，将这项服务从中国控制下撤出“对于保护我们的国家安全至关重要”。

ByteDance has said it does not plan to sell TikTok. Technology experts have noted that even if the company did agree to sell, the deal would likely be blocked by Chinese export rules.

字节跳动表示不打算出售 TikTok。 技术专家指出，即使该公司确实同意出售，该交易也可能会受到中国出口法规的阻止。

However, some American investors have expressed interest in buying the company’s American operations. They include Trump’s former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and billionaire businessman Frank McCourt.

然而，一些美国投资者表示有兴趣购买该公司的美国业务。 他们包括特朗普前财政部长史蒂文·姆努钦和亿万富翁商人弗兰克·麦考特。

Reuters news agency reports that it is not yet clear whether the Supreme Court will consider the case. But some legal experts have said the high court is likely to agree to hear it. The law is considered by some a test to see how far the U.S. government should be permitted to go in acting against technology companies using national security as a reason.

路透社报道称，目前尚不清楚最高法院是否会审理此案。 但一些法律专家表示，高等法院可能会同意审理。 一些人认为，这项法律是一项测试，旨在检验美国政府应允许在多大程度上以国家安全为由对科技公司采取行动。