TikTok shuts down in the US hours before the ban takes effect

TikTok went offline in the US just hours before a new law banning the platform was due to take effect.

A message that appeared on the app for US users said that a law had been passed banning TikTok, meaning “you can’t use TikTok yet.”

“We are fortunate that President Trump has said he will work with us on a solution to restore TikTok when he takes office,” the statement said.

It came after the social media platform warned that it would “go dark” on Sunday unless the outgoing Biden administration gave assurances that the ban would not be enforced.

Earlier, President-elect Donald Trump said he would “most likely” grant TikTok a 90-day reprieve from the ban once he takes office on Monday.

Users are reporting that the app has also been removed from the US Apple and Google app stores, and TikTok.com is not showing the videos.

Lawmakers voted to ban the app last year over concerns about its ties to the Chinese government. TikTok has repeatedly said it does not share information with Beijing.

The law, passed last April, required TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance to sell the US version of the platform to a neutral party by January 19 to prevent a total ban, which it has failed to do.

TikTok challenged the law, arguing that it violated free speech protections for its 170 million users in the country.

A few hours before to a social media platform that is going offlinecontent creators posted videos to say goodbye to their subscribers.

Creator Nicole Bloomgarden told the BBC that the absence of TikTok would lead to a significant reduction in earnings.

Another user, Erica Thompson, said that educational content on the platform would be the “biggest loss” for the community.