TikTok stops working in the United States and announces that it is working to restore its use "as soon as possible"

Chijioke Obinna

TikTok stops working in the United States and announces that it is working to restore its use "as soon as possible"

The social network TikTok It stopped working this Saturday in USA after the Supreme Court on Friday endorsed a law passed last year by Congress, which forced the platform to separate itself from its parent company, the Chinese ByteDance, or face closure.

The application, which has 170 million users in the US, sent many of them a message on their phones with the warning: “Sorry, TikTok is not available at this time”attributing the cessation of its operations to legislation promoted by Congress.

However, according to the Government of Joe BidenTikTok made this decision on its own initiative. After the Supreme Court ruling, the White House announced that the current Executive would not apply the law and that its compliance would be in the hands of the new president, Donald Trump, who will take office next Monday.

Precisely this Saturday in an interview with NBC, Trump stated that “probably” would grant the platform a 90-day extension to avoid its ban in the United States.

The TikTok message on users’ devices appeared approximately one hour and a half before the law comes into forcescheduled for 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on Sunday.

When trying to access the platform, users received a notice informing them that the application was blocked with a message in which the company stated: “We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution. Stay tuned!”

Additionally, some users reported that TikTok had been removed from the Apple app store in the US, so it can no longer be downloaded.

The law requires TikTok to be removed from app stores

In practice, the entry into force of the law requires Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, as well as web hosting companies that collaborate with the platform, such as Oracle and Amazon Web Services, to cut ties with it.

He non-compliance with the normwhich was approved on national security grounds, carries significant financial penalties: companies that continue to support TikTok could face fines of up to $5,000 per user, which could translate into billions of dollars, given the size of its base. of users in the US

On Friday night, TikTok already warned that it would be forced to suspend operations this Sunday unless the Biden Administration guaranteed that it would not impose fines on the companies that support the application.

In response, last night, the White House spokeswoman, Karine Jean-Pierrecalled TikTok’s statement a “publicity stunt” and reiterated that the Biden administration had no intention of enforcing the law, leaving the decision in Trump’s hands.

Why is TikTok closing in the US?

The legislation, approved in April 2024, gave ByteDance a period of nine months to sell its operations in the US to a buyer who was not considered an “adversary” of the country. and established that, otherwise, it would be banned on January 19 for reasons of national security.

The Biden Government and the legislators who promoted the rule consider it essential that TikTok separate itself from ByteDance for the risk that the Chinese government could access data of American users or influence the country’s public debate.

Faced with these arguments, TikTok assures that it has taken measures to protect the privacy of its users and denies that its platform can be used by Beijing as a propaganda tool.

In addition to TikTok, the ban has also affected CapCuta popular video editing app owned by ByteDance and used by many creators to generate content on the platform.

Even if Trump decided to reverse the measure, the entry into force of this law marks the first time in history that the US bans a social network nationwide.

Chijioke Obinna

I've been passionate about storytelling and journalism since my early days growing up in Lagos. With a background in political science and years of experience in investigative reporting, I aim to bring nuanced perspectives to pressing global issues. Outside of writing, I enjoy exploring Nigeria’s vibrant cultural scene and mentoring young aspiring journalists.