About 12 hours after it went offline in the United States, TikTok is back! The app started to reappear for US users first via web browsers, followed by the mobile app.
TikTok temporarily shut down for its 170 million US users just before a legally mandated deadline for its parent company, ByteDance, to either sell the US version of the app or stop operating in the country. Both Apple and Google had removed TikTok from their app stores.
This shutdown was the result of a lengthy legal dispute regarding a law that required ByteDance to divest its US operations by January 19 or face a ban.
The swift decision to restore the app came after TikTok became inaccessible to American users. Those attempting to access the app were greeted with a message indicating it was offline and encouraging them to “stay tuned.”
“A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the US. 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!” read the message.
President-elect Donald Trump announced the next day that he would sign an executive order after his inauguration on Monday to postpone the enforcement of the divest-or-ban law. Within hours, US users began regaining access to TikTok’s app and website.
The return of TikTok will be a relief for its 170 million American users, many of whom rely on the app for hours of daily news, entertainment, community engagement, and even income, especially after weeks of uncertainty.
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