TikTok’s future remains uncertain as Trump mulls a 90-day extension following a Supreme Court ruling upholding the app’s ban.
The TikTok social media platform became unavailable in the United States on Saturday night before a federal ban on the Chinese-owned short-video app took effect. The app has also disappeared from app stores.
“A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the United States,” a message on the app states.
“Unfortunately, that 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 reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned.”
President-elect Donald Trump said Saturday that he will probably give TikTok a temporary reprieve from a looming ban over the platform’s China ties, which would allow the platform to continue operating in the United States as his administration undertakes a careful review of the situation.
“The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate,” he told NBC in a Jan. 18 interview. “If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday.”
Trump’s remarks come after TikTok said late Friday it would be “forced to go dark” on Sunday—the day before Trump’s inauguration—unless the Biden administration delivers a guarantee that it will not enforce a law requiring the company to divest or face a nationwide ban.
“The statements issued today by both the Biden White House and the Department of Justice have failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurance to the service providers that are integral to maintaining TikTok’s availability to over 170 million Americans,” the company said in a statement on Jan. 17.
TikTok’s “go dark” warning was made after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling earlier on Friday that upheld a law banning the app in the United States unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, sells the platform by Sunday. ByteDance has repeatedly insisted it will not sell.
The White House weighed in on the controversy on Saturday, saying that TikTok’s threat to pull the plug on the app on Sunday was little more than a gimmick.
“It is a stunt, and we see no reason for TikTok or other companies to take actions in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office on Monday,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told media outlets.
By Tom Ozimek
