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Lemon8, a photo-sharing app by Bytedance, and RedNote, a Shanghai-based content-sharing platform, have seen a surge in popularity in the US as “TikTok refugees” migrate to alternative platforms ahead of a potential ban.
Now a law that could see TikTok shut down in the US threatens to ensnare these Chinese social media apps, and others gaining traction as TikTok-alternatives, legal experts say.
As of yesterday, RedNote — known as Xiaohongshu in China — was the top free app on the US iOS store, with Lemon8 taking the second spot.
The US Supreme Court is set to rule on the constitutionality of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, or PAFACA, that would lead to the TikTok app being banned in the US if its Beijing-based owner, ByteDance, doesn’t divest it by January 19.
While the legislation explicitly names TikTok and ByteDance, experts say its scope is broad and could open the door for Washington to target additional Chinese apps.
“Chinese social media apps, including Lemon8 and RedNote, could also end up being banned under this law,” Tobin Marcus, head of US policy and politics at New York-based research firm Wolfe Research, told CNBC.
If the TikTok ban is upheld, it will be unlikely that the law will allow potential replacements to originate from China without some form of divestiture, experts told CNBC.
PAFACA automatically applies to Lemon8 as it’s a subsidiary of ByteDance, while RedNote could fall under the law if its monthly average user base in the US continues to grow, said Marcus.
The legislation prohibits distributing, maintaining, or providing internet hosting services to any “foreign adversary controlled application.” — CNBC
Online Reporter