Will RedNote get banned in the US?

There’s a certain irony in the recent wave of TikTok users transitioning to RedNote. Originally, the clause to either divest or ban TikTok was aimed at curbing the influence of foreign-owned social networks potentially susceptible to the Chinese government's control. However, the move has unintentionally led users to another app with similar perceived risks.

The Law Behind the Ban

The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act serves as the backbone of this potential banning process. Passed with bipartisan support and signed into law by President Biden, this legislation targets apps posing national security risks. The act specifically names TikTok but broadly applies to foreign-owned apps fitting certain criteria:

• They must operate platforms with over 1 million monthly users who can create and share content.
• Their primary service must not center around reviews for products, businesses, or travel.
• They must be controlled by a “foreign adversary,” encompassing nations like North Korea, China, Russia, and Iran, or entities linked to individuals from these nations.

RedNote in the Spotlight

As of 2023, RedNote had over 300 million monthly active users globally. Recently, it saw a spike in U.S. users, gaining around 3 million in just a day. Headquartered in Shanghai, China, the app offers a social media experience not far from TikTok’s own model.

If deemed to meet the aforementioned criteria, RedNote might face the same fate as TikTok: be forced to divest from its parent company or risk being banned. For this process to initiate, the president must take several steps, including publicly presenting the app as a “significant threat” to national security, reporting to Congress, and providing a timeline for divestiture.

Key Steps in the Divest-or-Ban Procedure

• The president proposes the app as a national security threat and submits a report to Congress.
• After notifying Congress, at least 30 days must pass before a formal determination is made.
• The app’s parent company is given 270 days to comply with divestiture requirements, which could be contested in the DC Circuit Court of Appeals.
• If the company fails to comply or court challenges don’t succeed, the app may be banned in the U.S.
• For a sale to successfully override the ban, the administration must confirm the app is no longer controlled by foreign adversaries.
• Without divestiture, app stores and hosting services would cease supporting the app, effectively shutting it down within the U.S.

It’s worth noting that TikTok’s situation advanced further along this path. Once the law was signed, the timeline for divestiture kicked in for TikTok and its subsidiaries, including Lemon8, despite a lack of specific comments from U.S. authorities.

A Political Question

While RedNote appears to fall within the scope of the statute, its actual fate intertwines with political considerations. The app's national security risks are reminiscent of TikTok’s—data harvesting and covert propaganda, although affecting fewer American users given RedNote's smaller U.S. audience. The potential for a ban also depends on broader tensions between the U.S. and China or whether RedNote provokes political or commercial threats to influential U.S. figures and corporations.

The push to ban TikTok highlighted how politics can shape policy. Notably, Meta spearheaded campaigns for TikTok scrutiny—partially targeting it as a competitor—while some lawmakers underlined its slanted content moderation. This political backdrop affects whether RedNote becomes the next focal point.

The Road Ahead

RedNote’s growing U.S. user base might still be too small to trigger the same alarms as TikTok’s nearly 170 million monthly U.S. users. However, its trajectory invites questions: Will it stir tensions with prominent figures like Mark Zuckerberg or Elon Musk? Could rising U.S.-China hostilities lead to a wider crackdown on Chinese apps? These factors make RedNote’s future in the U.S. uncertain.

For now, the app continues to grow, with some users perhaps even taking the opportunity to learn Mandarin as they explore this new platform.