JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — Starting March 28, users will not be able to access TikTok through East Tennessee State University's Wi-Fi systems or wired networks.
The change comes after the Tennessee legislature voted to pass a bill aimed at blocking the social media app on college campuses.
The bill, SB 0834, was introduced by Senator Jon Lundberg (R - Bristol). It says that any public postsecondary institution that provides internet access cannot allow people to access "a social media platform using the institution's network if the platform is operated or hosted by a company based in the People's republic of China."
The company behind TikTok, ByteDance, was founded by Chinese entrepreneurs in Beijing in 2012. The company previously said that global institutional investors, such as the Carlyle Group own 60% of the company.
The app's CEO spoke with the U.S. Congress on Thursday, saying that they prioritized safety and denying that it posed a national security risk. The app has around 150 million U.S. users.