TikTok has gone darkish within the U.S., the results of a federal regulation that bans the favored short-form video app for hundreds of thousands of Americans — at the very least for now.
TikTok customers started receiving a message in regards to the ban round 10:30 p.m. Eastern. As of Saturday night, the app was additionally not accessible within the Apple or Google Play app shops.
“Sorry, TikTok isn’t available right now,” the corporate’s message reads. “A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now.”
The message additionally suggests this may occasionally solely be a brief disappearance. TikTok credit President-elect Donald Trump for indicating “he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office,” with customers urged to “stay tuned!”
The firm warned earlier this week the app’s disappearance was imminent, saying Friday that it could “go dark” except President Joe Biden’s administration made a “definitive statement” that it wouldn’t implement the ban.
Bipartisan majorities within the House and Senate handed final April a regulation requiring TikTok’s proprietor ByteDance to both promote the app or see it banned within the United States as a consequence of issues over potential Chinese surveillance, with Biden rapidly signing the invoice. And whereas efforts to drive ByteDance to divest return to Trump’s first administration, he has taken a special tone just lately. Trump requested the Supreme Court to delay the ban and stated he would “most likely” give the corporate a 90-day extension.
The Supreme Court issued a ruling upholding the regulation Friday; and the Biden administration appeared inclined to depart the app’s destiny within the arms of the following president. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre famous that with the regulation taking impact proper earlier than Trump’s inauguration on Monday, “actions to implement the law simply must fall to the next Administration.” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco issued an identical assertion that “the next phase of this effort — implementing and ensuring compliance with the law after it goes into effect on January 19 — will be a process that plays out over time.”
TikTok, nevertheless, advised this was not sufficient assurance for “critical service providers” to proceed itemizing or internet hosting the app within the United States except the Biden administration made the aforementioned “definitive statement.” Jean-Pierre referred to as TikTok’s response “a stunt” and claimed there’s “no reason for TikTok or other companies to take actions in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office on Monday.”
Stunt or not, TikTok is gone for now.
As for the app’s long-term prospects, Trump has stated he plans to “negotiate a resolution” that may presumably contain a sale or different concessions from ByteDance, which has repeatedly stated it’s not fascinated with promoting but appears optimistic about its prospects underneath Trump.
Trump reiterated to NBC News on Saturday that he’ll “most likely” give TikTok a 90-day reprieve from the ban as soon as he takes workplace Monday.
“I think that would be, certainly, an option that we look at. The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate. You know, it’s appropriate. We have to look at it carefully. It’s a very big situation,” Trump advised the outlet.
Many potential patrons have thrown their hats within the ring, hoping for a shot at TikTok’s 170 million customers, from billionaire Frank McCourt making a “people’s bid” to Perplexity AI proposing a merger.
There was even a report suggesting that the Chinese authorities was contemplating a sale to Elon Musk as a part of a broader take care of the Trump administration. A TikTok spokesperson referred to as that report “pure fiction.”
In the meantime, various Chinese-owned apps like RedNote and Lemon8 have acquired a lift as TikTok customers seek for alternate options.
