TikTok has been reinstated on U.S. app stores, with Apple and Google restoring the short-form video platform nearly a month after its removal, reported TechCrunch. The app, along with ByteDance-owned CapCut and Lemon8, was initially taken down in compliance with a national security law banning TikTok in the U.S.
The law, signed by former President Joe Biden, required ByteDance to divest TikTok’s U.S. operations to a non-Chinese entity by January 19, 2025, or face a ban. Failure to comply would have resulted in severe financial penalties for app store operators. ByteDance challenged the decision, but the Supreme Court upheld the law on January 17.
However, upon taking office on January 20, President Donald Trump issued an executive order delaying the ban, granting ByteDance an additional 75 days to secure a buyer for TikTok’s U.S. business.
While TikTok resumed operations immediately after the delay, Apple and Google initially kept the app off their platforms due to uncertainty regarding the law’s enforcement. As a result, new users were unable to download TikTok, though those who had already installed it continued to have access.
With the app now restored on both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, U.S. users can once again download TikTok without restrictions.
Is a wildly popular social media app a threat to the U.S.? AP Photo/Michael Dwyer
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday, granting TikTok an additional 75 days before a law banning the popular video-sharing platform takes effect.
The move comes as the administration seeks to carefully evaluate the next steps in addressing national security concerns while avoiding a sudden disruption for millions of American users.
In the order, President Trump instructed the Attorney General to refrain from enforcing the ban, allowing his administration time to “determine the appropriate course forward in an orderly way that protects national security while avoiding an abrupt shutdown of a communications platform used by millions of Americans.” This decision emphasises the complexity of balancing national security interests with the widespread reliance on TikTok as a social media and communication tool.
The executive order follows months of scrutiny over TikTok’s ties to its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, with U.S. officials expressing concerns about potential data privacy risks and foreign influence.
The extended deadline provides a window for the administration to explore potential solutions, including the possibility of a sale or restructuring of TikTok’s U.S. operations to address these security issues.
As the debate over TikTok’s future continues, the 75-day extension offers a temporary reprieve for the platform’s vast user base and content creators, who have grown increasingly vocal about the app’s cultural and economic impact.
