January 19th 2025.
On Saturday night, just two hours before a ban was supposed to be imposed, TikTok suddenly disappeared in the United States. Users were greeted with a message saying, "Sorry, TikTok isn't available right now. A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the US. Unfortunately, that means you can't use TikTok for now." This sudden shutdown also affected users in Australia, where they were greeted with the same message when trying to access American-based accounts.
Originally, TikTok was expected to go dark on Sunday, after the Supreme Court upheld the ban on the popular Chinese-owned social media platform. However, there is a possibility that the app may be back as early as Monday. Late on Saturday, TikTok began displaying a message that read, "We regret that a US law banning TikTok will take effect on January 19 and force us to make our services temporarily unavailable. We're working to restore our service in the US as soon as possible, and we appreciate your support. Please stay tuned."
This announcement came just hours before the ban was set to take effect. However, there is now some uncertainty surrounding the duration of the ban, as President-elect Donald Trump has stated that he will most likely delay the ban for 90 days after he takes office on Monday. In an interview with NBC News on Saturday, he stated, "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." He also added, "If I decide to do that, I'll probably announce it on Monday."
This new development from TikTok, along with the suggestion of a possible extension, is just the latest twist in a months-long saga that has left the fate of the app, with its 170 million US users, in limbo. The law that would block TikTok was passed last year with strong bipartisan support and was signed into law by President Joe Biden. Lawmakers expressed concerns over TikTok's ties to China and its access to large amounts of data, citing it as a potential threat to national security.
Many US users have been preparing for the app's end, including influencers and small businesses who rely on the platform for their livelihoods. However, they still hold onto the hope that the app will somehow be saved. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court's decision on Friday to uphold the ban dashed those hopes. Later that day, TikTok announced that it would be going offline on Sunday unless there was intervention from the Biden administration.
There is also concern among the companies that operate app stores and run computer servers, as they may be held liable for carrying the app if the ban goes into effect. This is a potential reason why TikTok may go dark, as these service providers may stop carrying the app to avoid any legal consequences.
Meanwhile, Trump, who initially warned of TikTok's dangers five years ago, is now positioning himself as the app's savior. Earlier this month, he posted on his Truth Social account, "Why would I want to get rid of TikTok?," along with statistics about his own popularity on the app. TikTok's CEO, Shou Chew, has also met with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago home in the weeks leading up to the ban and is expected to attend Trump's inauguration on Monday.
The law that was passed last year allows the president to delay the ban for 90 days if there is evidence that parties working to arrange a sale of TikTok to a US-owned company have made significant progress. However, TikTok's owner, ByteDance, has rejected potential buyers. The company has argued that it is popular among American users and provides value to small businesses across the country, as it fights to stay online without any change in ownership.
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