The Supreme Court is hearing TikTok’s latest challenge to the US ban

In December, the newly elected president of the United States, Donald Trump urged the court to postpone its decision until he returns to the White House, allowing him to seek a “political solution” to address the issues ahead.

TikTok’s lawyer told the court on Friday that he sees the platform “going dark” on January 19 without intervention.

Ms. Prelogar, who argued for the U.S. Justice Department, said that “nothing permanent” should happen that day and there was still time to sell.

Forcing the app to go dark could be the “shakedown” that ByteDance needs to seriously consider selling, he said.

He compared the situation to a “game of chicken” and the United States not “blinking first,” adding, “This will fundamentally change the landscape that ByteDance can think about.”

The judges will now review their decision. A decision is expected to be made in the near future.

More than a hundred people braved freezing conditions in Washington to attend the hearing in person.

Danielle Ballesteros, a UC San Diego student, said she had been waiting outside the court since 6:30 a.m. local time.

“I don’t think TikTok deserves to be banned,” he told BBC News.

While admitting to using it “probably a lot,” she said she believes the app is an important news source for her generation.