WeChat will remain available in the US for the time being after court order

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A US judge has provisionally blocked the ban on WeChat in the US. The impact on freedom of speech is greater than the interest of the US government in ensuring national security, the verdict.

WeChat users had filed a lawsuit in the US to obtain a temporary injunction in court so that the chat app would remain available. The San Francisco judge ruled in favor of the users. In particular because they would not have alternative channels for communication, the judge decided that the impact on the First Amendment of the US constitution would be too great. That amendment regulates freedom of expression. Transactions via WeChat also remain possible.

WeChat had 19 million daily active users in the US in August, according to app analytics company Apptopia. In the US, the app is particularly popular with Chinese students and Americans who have trade relationships in China, according to Reuters.

On Friday, the US Department of Commerce ruled that Apple’s App Store and Google Play Store had to block WeChat and TikTok for US users from Sunday. The Justice Department pleaded in court that the blockade should go ahead because otherwise the “determination of the president would be frustrated on how best to counter the threat to national security.” The US government delayed the ban on TikTok due to an impending deal with Oracle and Walmart that would address national security concerns.

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