What is TikTok's fate? With ban less than 1 week away, here's what we know.

The Supreme Court heard arguments for two-and-a-half hours on Friday over whether TikTok can be banned in the United States in less than one week. By the end, the justices appeared ready to allow the U.S. government to force TikTok's Chinese parent company to sell the company or go dark.

Last spring, President Joe Biden signed legislation into law that requires TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, to sell the popular social media platform or face a ban on national security grounds.The social media giant wants to delay enforcing the law, scheduled for Jan. 19, which they say violates the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment protection against government abridgment of free speech.

If the ban takes effect on Sunday, Apple and Google would no longer be able to offer TikTok for downloads for new users, but existing users could still access the app. The U.S. government and TikTok agree that the app would degrade and eventually become unusable over time because companies would not be able to offer support services.

President-elect Donald Trump is scheduled to be sworn into office on Jan. 20 - just one day after the ban could be implemented. In late December, Trump urged the court to put a hold on the Jan. 19 deadline to give his incoming administration "the opportunity to pursue a political resolution of the questions at issue in the case."

What will the SCOTUS decision determine?

If SCOTUS upholds the legislation, ByteDance will have until Sunday to divest the U.S. operation of TikTok.

During Friday's hearing, Justice Samuel Alito asked if the court could temporarily block the law or administratively halt the law temporarily.

U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, arguing for the Biden administration in defending the law, advised against a temporary block, unless TikTok was likely to win based on its First Amendment claim of a right to distribute its content. As for an administrative halt, Prelogar said she would defer to the justices on whether they have enough time to decide the case.

When will SCOTUS make its decision?

SCOTUS could release its decision at any time. The court does not need to release a decision by a specific date.

How would the TikTok ban affect users?

If ByteDance does not sell TikTok by Jan. 19, the platform will be banned in the United States. This means that it will become illegal for U.S. internet hosting services and app stores to distribute TikTok.

TikTok users who already have the app downloaded on mobile devices will still have access to it, but they will be unable to update the app, which will likely become unusable over time. The TikTok website will become unavailable through U.S.-based internet hosting services.

Would there be a way to work around the TikTok ban?

How exactly the ban would be implemented is uncertain, but content creators are using the time ahead of Jan. 19 to educate other users about virtual private networks (VPN), which allow online users to mask their locations. In theory, if a user used a VPN to set their location outside of the U.S., the user could be able to access TikTok.

But there are a few instances in which VPNs wouldn't work. Dan York, a senior advisor to the Internet Society, said popular VPNs could be blocked, and using an out-of-country location wouldn't work. Additionally, using a VPN could result in slower or unreliable connections, he said.

York also advised users to do thorough research before using VPNs, as there are malicious companies that may want to take advantage of users looking to use one for the first time.

Are there any interested buyers?

Yes. Project Liberty, an organization led by billionaire Frank McCourt, announced last week that it made a formal offer to ByteDance to buy the U.S. assets of TikTok. Project Liberty's President Tomicah Tillemann said in a statement that the organization would not publicly disclose the bid amount.

McCourt, former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, announced last month that Project Liberty had secured verbal commitments of up to $20 billion for the purchase. "Shark Tank" host and investor Kevin O'Leary announced last week that he was joining Project Liberty on the purchase plan.

If Project Liberty successfully purchased TikTok, it would only be the U.S. assets, which do not include the algorithm, as China finds it to be its intellectual property.

Contributing: USA TODAY's Maureen Groppe

Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Follow her on X and Instagram @gretalcross. Story idea? Email her at [email protected].