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An apple and Google removed TikTok from their app stores on Saturday night, complying with a law requiring China’s ByteDance to drop the social app or face an effective US ban
The removal of TikTok from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store means that people in the US can no longer download the popular short-form video app to their devices. The delisting of the app comes after the Supreme Court on Friday unanimously upheld the Protecting Americans from Foreign-Controlled Adversary Apps Act, which President Joe Biden signed in April. TikTok on Friday said its service it would get darkmeaning it will stop working for Americans unless the Biden administration intervenes.
In Apple’s App Store, an “App Not Available” message appears on the previous TikTok app install page.
“This app is not currently available in your country or region,” the message said.
“Sorry, the requested URL was not found on this server,” said a message on the page previously hosted by TikTok on the Google Play store.
Some users who visited the TikTok app and website on Saturday were greeted with a message that read: “Sorry, TikTok is currently unavailable.”
“A law has been passed in the US banning TikTok. Unfortunately, this means you can’t use TikTok for now,” the notice said. “We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to restore TikTok once he takes office. Please follow!”
Lemon8, another ByteDance-owned service, also displayed a notice informing users that it was not available in the US. The app has recently shot up the charts, becoming one of the most popular free apps for iOS.
“Unfortunately, Lemon8 is currently unavailable,” the notice countries.
TikTok stopped serving its app in the US on Saturday.
The law requires service providers to no longer support TikTok in the US if ByteDance fails to make a “qualified exemption” of the app by Sunday. As a result, Apple, Google and Oracle could face stiff penalties for not complying with the law. Apple and Google previously distributed the app through their app stores, while Oracle provides cloud computing services to TikTok and said in June that the law would hurt his business.
After the Supreme Court decision, TikTok CEO Shou Chew said that using TikTok is a First Amendment right and added that more than 7 million US businesses use it to make money and find customers.
Waiting for Trump
“Rest assured, we will do everything in our power to ensure that our platform thrives as your online home for unlimited creativity and discovery, as well as a source of inspiration and joy for years to come,” Chu said in video on TikTok.
Chu also thanked President-elect Donald Trump, who previously he asked The Supreme Court to suspends the application of the law and to allow his administration “the opportunity to pursue a political resolution of the issues in dispute in the case.” Chew it is expected to attend Trump’s inauguration in Washington on Monday, along with tech leaders from companies including Meta, AmazonApple and Google.
Trump arrived in Washington on Saturday night. His transition team did not immediately respond to TikTok’s suspension. On Friday, Trump said the Supreme Court’s decision was expected “and everybody should respect it.”
“My decision on TikTok will be made in the not-too-distant future, but I need to have time to review the situation. Stay tuned!” Trump wrote in a post on its Truth Social social media app.
White House press secretary Carine Jean-Pierre on Saturday acknowledged TikTok’s announcement that it would go dark, characterizing it as a “stunt.”
“We have made our position clear and plain: Actions to implement this law will be up to the next administration,” Jean-Pierre said. “So TikTok and other companies should take all the concerns with them.”
Trump said NBC News on Saturday that he will “most likely” give TikTok a 90-day deadline extension on Sunday and that he will “likely announce” a decision on Monday.
“I think that would certainly be an option that we’re looking at,” Trump said in the phone interview. “The 90-day extension is something that will most likely be done because it is appropriate. You know, it’s appropriate. We have to look at it carefully. It’s a very big situation.”
Artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI on Saturday filed a bid for TikTok that would see the AI-powered search engine startup combine with TikTok’s US operations and new equity partners, CNBC reported.
Businessman Frank McCourt’s internet advocacy group Project Freedom announced on January 9 that it had submitted an offer to buy TikTok from ByteDance on undisclosed terms. McCourt told CNBC on Friday that “we are, in my opinion, the only candidate” that meets the necessary criteria to separate the technology from the Chinese algorithm.
