TikTok ceased operations in the United States due to a federal law that set a 9-month deadline for the parent company, ByteDance, to find a buyer and sell the app. The ban, which came into effect on Saturday evening, January 19, resulted in the removal of TikTok from the App Store and Google Play, making it impossible to access or download the platform.
According to TechCrunch, TikTok users received a message: "Sorry, TikTok isn’t available right now. A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now." The post also noted that the ban could be temporary, as President-elect Donald Trump has expressed a desire to promote the app's return after his inauguration. Users were urged to "stay tuned".
The ban stems from legislation passed in April that required ByteDance's Chinese parent company to either sell the app or face a total ban in the United States. The law was supported by both parties in Congress and was quickly signed by President Joe Biden over concerns about potential Chinese espionage. ByteDance has repeatedly denied such allegations.
Attempts to force ByteDance to sell the app began during Trump's first term in office. However, Trump's recent statements indicate a change in his position. He urged the Supreme Court to delay the ban and hinted at the possibility of granting ByteDance a 90-day extension to find a solution.
On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld the law, allowing the ban to take effect. The Biden administration has largely refrained from taking action, emphasizing that the responsibility for enforcing the law will lie with the future Trump administration. White House Press Secretary Karin Jean-Pierre said: "Actions to implement the law must be taken by the next administration."
Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco added that enforcement will be a gradual process under Trump's leadership.
Despite attempts to postpone the ban, TikTok said it lacked sufficient guarantees to continue operating in the United States. The sudden disappearance of the platform has forced millions of users to look for alternatives. Chinese apps such as RedNote and Lemon8 have seen a sharp increase in downloads.
President Trump expressed confidence that the issue could be resolved. In a statement to NBC News, he said: “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.”
Various potential buyers have expressed interest, including billionaire Frank McCourt and Perplexity AI. There were even rumors that the Chinese government was considering selling TikTok to Elon Musk as part of a broader deal with the Trump administration, but a TikTok spokesperson called it "pure fiction."
While the long-term fate of TikTok in the US remains unclear, Trump's proposed executive actions and negotiations may lead to a resolution and the resumption of its operations.