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 social media platform’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party.
The delay would allow the platform to continue operating in the United States as the Trump administration undertakes a 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.”
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 Supreme Court ruled earlier on Friday to uphold the forced divestiture law requiring TikTok’s China-based parent company, ByteDance, to sell 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.
The press secretary added that implementation of the law banning TikTok—which President Joe Biden signed in April 2024—would be up to the incoming Trump administration.
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