TikTok Makes a Triumphant Return as Trump Promises Its Revival!

by Abderrazzak fahim

TikTok Restores Service in the U.S. After Temporary Shutdown

On Sunday, TikTok announced that it had restored service to users in the United States. This came after the app went offline due to a federal ban, which President-elect Donald Trump vowed to pause on his first day in office.

Trump said he would sign an executive order to give TikTok’s China-based parent company more time to find an approved buyer, preventing a permanent ban in the U.S. He shared this plan on his Truth Social account, just as millions of U.S. TikTok users woke up to find they could no longer access the app.

In response to the law, Google and Apple removed TikTok from their stores, as the law required the company to sell its U.S. operations by Sunday to avoid heavy fines. This law passed with strong support from both political parties in April.

The company that runs TikTok said in a post on X that Trump’s post had provided “the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans.”

After TikTok’s announcement, some users reported that the app was working again, and the website seemed to be functioning for at least some. However, even as the app flickered back online, it was still unavailable for download in the Apple and Google app stores.

The law that went into effect Sunday required TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to sever ties with the U.S. operations due to national security concerns over the app’s connection to China. However, the law allowed the president to grant a 90-day extension if a potential sale was in progress.

Although there have been a few offers from investors, ByteDance previously stated it would not sell. In his post on Sunday, Trump mentioned that he “would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture,” though it was unclear whether he was referring to the U.S. government or an American company.

Trump said his order would “extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect” and “confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order.

“Americans deserve to see our exciting Inauguration on Monday, as well as other events and conversations,” Trump wrote.

The on-and-off availability of TikTok followed a unanimous ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday. The court decided that the national security risks associated with TikTok’s ties to China outweighed concerns about limiting free speech for the app’s millions of U.S. users.

When U.S. TikTok users tried to watch or post videos on the platform Saturday night, they were greeted with a pop-up message that read:
“Sorry, TikTok isn’t available right now.”

The message further explained: “A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now.”

The service interruption, which TikTok initiated hours earlier, took many users by surprise. Experts had initially stated that the law did not require TikTok to take down its platform entirely. Instead, it only required app stores to remove the app. Current users were expected to still have access to videos until the app stopped functioning due to a lack of updates.

“The community on TikTok is like nothing else, so it’s weird to not have that anymore,” content creator Tiffany Watson, 20, said Sunday.

Watson said she had been in denial about the looming shutdown and with the space time on her hands plans to focus on bolstering her presence on Instagram and YouTube.

“There are still people out there who want beauty content,” Watson said.

“Apple is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates,” the company said.

Trump’s proposal to issue an executive order to save TikTok on his first day in office highlights the coincidental timing of the ban and the unique political dynamics surrounding the social media platform. Originally known for its playful videos featuring dances and music clips, TikTok’s evolution into a political flashpoint has sparked debates about national security and tech policy.

During his first term, Trump signed executive orders in 2020 to ban TikTok and the Chinese messaging app WeChat, both of which were later blocked by courts. As momentum for a TikTok ban grew in Congress last year, however, Trump opposed the proposed legislation. Interestingly, Trump has credited TikTok with boosting his appeal among young voters during the previous presidential election.

Despite the role his administration played in initiating the nationwide ban, the Biden administration has made it clear in recent days that it does not plan to enforce or carry out the ban before Trump officially takes office on Monday.

In the nine months since Congress passed the law requiring TikTok to be sold or banned, no clear buyers have come forward, and ByteDance has remained firm in its stance against selling the platform. However, President-elect Trump expressed hope that his administration could broker a deal to “save” TikTok and keep the app operational in the United States.

TikTok CEO Shou Chew is expected to have a prominent seat at Trump’s inauguration. Late Saturday, Chew posted a video thanking Trump for his commitment to collaborate with the company in ensuring TikTok’s continued presence in the U.S., while also praising Trump’s “strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship.”

Michael Waltz, Trump’s choice for national security adviser, shared with CBS News on Sunday that Trump had discussed the TikTok issue with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a weekend call. The two leaders agreed to work together on resolving the matter.

In a new development on Saturday, artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI submitted a proposal to ByteDance to create a new entity that would merge Perplexity with TikTok’s U.S. operations, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Perplexity doesn’t seek to purchase the algorithm used by ByteDance, which powers TikTok’s video recommendations based on users’ interests and has played a crucial role in the platform’s success.

Other investors have also shown interest in TikTok. For instance, Kevin O’Leary, a star of Shark Tank, revealed that he and billionaire Frank McCourt had offered ByteDance $20 billion in cash. Additionally, Steven Mnuchin, former Treasury Secretary under Trump, announced plans last year to assemble a group of investors aiming to acquire TikTok.

In Washington, lawmakers and government officials have expressed ongoing concerns about TikTok. They fear that the algorithm, which determines the content users see, could be manipulated by Chinese authorities. However, the U.S. government has yet to present any concrete evidence that TikTok has shared user data with Chinese officials or altered its algorithm to further China’s interests.