TikTok It is dark in America Now that the ban or divest law passed last year is coming into effect. The app has been removed from Apple and Google’s app stores, is unavailable on the web, and users who open the app are blocked from viewing the video.
According to TikTok’s own numbers, the social network used by 170 million people in the U.S. has a surprising effect. While other social media platforms have experienced outages, even prolonged ones, no network as large as TikTok has shut down without any indication of when or if it will return online.
This is despite the Biden administration saying it is passing on enforcement responsibilities On the Trump administration And calling out the threat of TikTok going offline a “stunt” TikTok has emphasized That without clear assurances, it will have to close up shop in the US.
Within TikTok, A memo to employees said that “President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to restore TikTok after he takes office on January 20” and that “the team is working tirelessly to bring our app back to the US as soon as possible.” are doing.”
A warning message began to appear Around 9PM ET on Saturday evening, TikTok’s app is informing users of the pending shutdown:
We regret the US banning TikTok. The law will take effect on January 19 and will force us to temporarily make our services unavailable.
We are working to restore our service in the US as soon as possible, and we appreciate your support. Please stay tuned.
The app started blocking users around 10:30PM ET. A message now says the app is “not available at this time” but that the company expects a resolution under President-elect Trump:
Sorry, TikTok is currently unavailable
A law banning TikTok has been passed in the US, unfortunately, which means you can’t use TikTok for now.
We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to restore TikTok after taking office. Please stay tuned!
Several other apps owned by TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, have also been taken offline, including video editor CapCut and social platform Lemon8.
The ban-or-divest law, which goes into effect on Sunday, effectively bans TikTok unless ByteDance sells its majority stake in the company. But ByteDance has shown little sign of being ready to sell, even as the deadline quickly approaches. Instead, TikTok sued the US over the law, eventually losing a Supreme Court case last week.
The political game of hot potato, where no one wants to be seen as responsible for banning TikTok, suggests that the app may not be going for good. But with no definitive plans coming from Biden, Trump, ByteDance, or TikTok, it’s unclear how long the ban could last.
