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an apple and Google removed TikTok from its app stores on Saturday night, in compliance with a law requiring Chinese company ByteDance to drop the social app or face an effective ban in the US
The removal of TikTok from the Apple App Store and Google Play means that US residents can no longer download the popular short video app to their devices. The program’s delisting comes after the Supreme Court unanimously upheld the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversaries Control Act on Friday, which President Joe Biden signed in April. TikTok announced its service on Friday would darkenmeaning it will stop working for Americans unless the Biden administration intervenes.
In Apple’s App Store, the pre-installation page for TikTok shows the message “The app is not available.”
“This app is currently not available in your country or region,” it says.
“We’re sorry, the requested URL could not be found on this server,” said a message on the page that used to house TikTok on the Google Play Store.
Some users who visited the TikTok app and website on Saturday were greeted with a message that read: “Unfortunately, TikTok is currently unavailable.”
“A law has been passed in the US that bans TikTok. Unfortunately, this means you can’t use TikTok for now,” the post said. “We are fortunate that President Trump has made it clear that he will work with us on a solution to restore TikTok when he takes office. Stay tuned!”
Lemon8, another service owned by ByteDance, also showed a message telling users that it was not available in the US. Recently, the app has climbed the charts to become one of the most popular free apps for iOS.
“Unfortunately, Lemon8 is currently unavailable.” notification states.
TikTok stopped serving its app in the US on Saturday.
The law requires service providers to no longer support TikTok in the U.S. unless ByteDance is able to make a “qualified sale” 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 for TikTok and said in June that the law would hurt his business.
After the decision of the Supreme Court, TikTok CEO Shou Chew said that the use of TikTok is a First Amendment right and added that more than 7 million US companies 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 continues to grow as your online home for limitless creativity and discovery, as well as a source of inspiration and joy for years to come,” Chu said in TikTok video.
Chu also thanked President-elect Donald Trump, who previously asked Supreme Court to to suspend the execution of the law and to give his administration “an opportunity to seek a political resolution of the issues at issue in the case.” There is something to chew participation is expected Trump’s inauguration in Washington on Monday with the company’s tech leaders Meta, AmazonApple and Google.
Trump arrived in Washington on Saturday evening. His transition team did not immediately respond to TikTok’s shutdown. On Friday, Trump said the Supreme Court’s decision was expected “and everyone should respect it.”
“My decision on TikTok will be made in the near future, but I have to have time to consider the situation. Stay tuned!” Trump wrote in the post on its social media app Truth Social.
White House press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre on Saturday acknowledged TikTok’s announcement that it would go dark, calling it a “gimmick.”
“We have clearly and directly stated our position: actions to implement this law lie with the next administration,” said Jean-Pierre. “That’s why TikTok and other companies need to address any issues with them.”
Trump told NBC News said on Saturday that it would “likely” extend TikTok’s 90-day extension to Sunday’s deadline and that it would “likely announce” a decision on Monday.
“I think that’s certainly an option that we’re looking at,” Trump said in a phone interview. “The 90-day extension is something that will likely be done because it’s appropriate. You know, it’s appropriate. We have to look at it carefully. It’s a very big situation.”
Artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI filed for TikTok on Saturday, which would see the AI-powered search engine team up with TikTok’s U.S. businesses and new capital partners, CNBC reported.
Internet advocacy group of businessman Frank McCourt Freedom project On January 9, it announced that it had submitted an offer to buy TikTok from ByteDance on undisclosed terms. McCourt told CNBC on Friday that “we are, I believe, the only bidder” that meets the necessary criteria to separate the technology from the Chinese algorithm.
