TikTok said Sunday that it would be restoring service to U.S. users after blocking it the evening before.
In a statement, TikTok said its video platform was coming back online after President-elect Donald Trump provided assurances necessary to the company’s service providers.
“In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service,” TikTok said in a post on X. “We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive.”
“It’s a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship. We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States,” the company added.
Just hours before the move from TikTok, Trump posted to Truth Social calling for the app to remain available.
Trump indicated in his post that he wanted it to be available in order to broadcast his inauguration Monday.
“I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security. The order will also confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order,” Trump wrote.
Follow along for live updates.
TikTok’s availability remained limited as of early afternoon, with access to the platform’s content available through web browsers. The app was also still unavailable for download from Apple and Google’s app stores.
The law banning TikTok, which was scheduled to go into effect Sunday, allows the president to grant a 90-day extension before the ban is enforced, provided certain criteria are met.
Under a law that President Joe Biden signed in April, TikTok would be banned unless its Chinese owner, ByteDance, sold the company to a non-Chinese buyer.
Prior to the ban’s implementation, both Biden and the incoming Trump administration appeared to reverse their earlier positions on TikTok.
During his campaign, Trump, who had advocated for a ban during his first term as president, came out in support of TikTok, saying he’d save the app.
After the Supreme Court greenlit the law on Friday, the Biden administration issued a statement saying it would not enforce the ban, leaving that responsibility to Trump.
On Saturday evening, the app was removed from app stores and service for American users was suspended.
TikTok’s future in the U.S. is still up in the air. Even if TikTok is given an extension, as Trump has vowed to do in an executive order tomorrow, the law still forces Bytedance to eventually sell the app to a non-Chinese owner — something the parent company has indicated no interest in doing.
TikTok said in its latest statement that it “will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States.”
Trump has floated the idea of a joint venture for TikTok, with the U.S. owning 50%, but even that idea faces a potential hurdle. The law includes a 20% cap for “foreign adversary” owners, so it’s not immediately clear whether ByteDance could exceed that ownership share without a change in the law.
The law defines “controlled by a foreign adversary” in several different ways, but one definition is: “an entity with respect to which a foreign person or combination of foreign persons described in subparagraph (A) directly or indirectly own at least a 20 percent stake.”
Congress, of course, could change the law.
The post TikTok begins restoring service for U.S. users after Trump comments appeared first on NBC News.
