Update 01/19 (10:45 AM EST): TikTok is back in the U.S. The platform announced an update on X. “TikTok is in the process of restoring service. We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive.”
TikTok has officially gone dark, starting Saturday night, impacting both Android and iOS users. This happened just before a new law kicks in, which will ban TikTok in the United States. If you open TikTok on your Galaxy phone now, you’ll be greeted with a message. “A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now.”
TikTok confirmed the ban with a pop-up on both Android and iOS apps. “We regret that a U.S. law banning TikTok will take effect on January 19 and force us to make our services temporarily unavailable.” Seemingly, it’s now removed from the Google Play Store, too.
The fate of TikTok ban is in Donald Trump’s hands
Donald Trump could make the final call, as he’s set to assume office on Monday. Biden will officially be out of power by then. In a one-on-one with NBC News on Saturday, Trump said he’s most likely going to grant a “90-day extension”. For some context, Chinese-owned TikTok was given the ultimatum to sell the app to a non-Chinese owner or face a full ban. It chose the latter.
“The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate,” Trump told NBC News. He added, “If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday.” TikTok expressed optimism. It noted in a statement, “We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office.”
TikTok is already banned in several countries, including India, which used to be a massive market for the app. The United States is now joining the likes of India, Afghanistan, Iran, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Senegal, and Somalia in banning TikTok. The future of TikTok in the U.S. is still up in the air, but there are talks that Perplexity and TikTok could merge to reactivate the app in the U.S. in the coming months.
