What to know about the TikTok ban:
- TikTok said it would restore service to U.S. users after it blocked it the evening before. As of Sunday afternoon, access to the app had been restored for many. However, those who did not already have it on their devices or deleted it still appeared unable to download it through the Apple and Android app stores.
- U.S. users who tried to access the app Saturday evening were greeted with a pop-up message on their screens saying “a law banning TikTok has been enacted.”
- President Joe Biden signed a law in April that required TikTok to divest from its Chinese ownership and sell to a U.S. company or face a shutdown. His administration said it’s leaving enforcement of the ban in the hands of the incoming Trump administration.
- President-elect Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that he’d like to bring the app back online in the United States as soon as possible, even if there’s no deal yet for a U.S.-based company to buy it.
TikTok still not available for redownload in app stores
As of this afternoon, TikTok is still unavailable for redownload in app stores.
Some American users who deleted the app following news of the ban are now posting their dismay on other social media platforms, lamenting their inability to access it.
Wisconsin man arrested after alleged arson attempt in response to TikTok ban
A 19-year-old man who was arrested in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, today for allegedly setting fire to a building cited the TikTok ban as his motive, according to the city’s police department.
The building included the office of Rep. Glenn Grothman, R-Wis., who voted last April in favor of the bill to ban TikTok. Fond du Lac officials said in a news release today that “the building was unoccupied at the time and no injuries were reported.”
“Acts of violence, in any form are not tolerated, and we remain committed to protecting the safety and well-being of our community,” Police Chief Aaron Goldstein said in a news release.
An investigation into the incident is in its preliminary stages, the police department and city said in a news release. The man, whose name has not been released, “is being held at the Fond du Lac County Jail and a charge of arson is being referred to the Fond du Lac County District Attorney's Office,” according to the news release.
Meta swoops in to announce CapCut copycat
The ban on ByteDance apps means CapCut, one of the most popular short-form video editing apps in U.S. app stores, was also made unavailable today. The same day, Meta introduced its own CapCut lookalike: an app called Edits.
“Now there’s a lot going on in the world right now, and no matter what happens, we think it’s our job to create the most compelling creative tools for those of you who make videos — for not just Instagram, but for platforms out there — as we can,” Instagram chief Adam Mosseri said in a video on Instagram and Threads.
Mosseri said the app won’t launch until February and that the first version will be “incomplete.” Starting today, he said, the app is available for preorder in the Apple App Store and is coming soon to Android as well.
TikTok welcomes U.S. users back with message crediting Trump
Some American TikTok users opening the app are now receiving yet another pop-up message, this time a cheerful “Welcome back!”
“Thanks for your patience and support. As a result of President Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the U.S.!” the message states. “You can continue to create, share, and discover all the things you love on TikTok.”
TikTok still appears unavailable in app stores
Though access to the app has been restored for many U.S. users, those who don’t have the app on their devices still appear unable to download it through the Apple and Android app stores.
When searching for TikTok in the Apple App Store, a banner message states: “TikTok and other ByteDance apps are not available in the country or region you’re in.”
Sen. Cotton contradicts Trump assurances, says companies could still be liable for hosting TikTok
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., is rebutting Trump’s assurances that U.S. service providers “will face no penalties” for providing TikTok to Americans. He is the new chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, which is slated to meet Monday.
“Any company that hosts, distributes, services, or otherwise facilitates communist-controlled TikTok could face hundreds of billions of dollars of ruinous liability under the law, not just from DOJ, but also under securities law, shareholder lawsuits, and state AGs,” he wrote on X. “Think about it.”
In his Truth Social post this morning, Trump had written that his executive order tomorrow will “confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order.”
Access to TikTok is already coming back
For some U.S. users, the TikTok app appears to already be working again, less than an hour after TikTok announced it would be restoring service. These users are able to scroll and post as normal.
TikTok has been vital part of creator economy, recent report says
TikTok is the most commonly used platform by brands that engage in influencer marketing, according to a recent report by the Influencer Marketing Hub, which also found that 50% of influencer marketers believe TikTok delivers the best return on investment for short-form video content.
It has become a giant in the evolving creator economy, which includes millions of social media personalities who make money through brand deals, platform monetization and audience subscriptions.
Research from Goldman Sachs last year predicted that the total market opportunity of the creator economy could reach $480 billion by 2027.
TikTok law caps 'foreign adversary' ownership at 20%
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 under last year's bipartisan law requiring a sale of the app.
The law includes a 20% cap for "foreign adversary" owners, so it's not immediately clear whether TikTok's parent company, 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."
(Subparagraph (A) refers to "a foreign person that is domiciled in, is headquartered in, has its principal place of business in, or is organized under the laws of a foreign adversary country.")
Congress, of course, could change the law.
Despite Trump’s assurances, TikTok’s long-term fate is still undecided
Although TikTok has said it will restore service to Americans in the wake of Trump’s assurances, this does not overturn the law that is still in effect.
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,” which could entail working together on a deal with U.S. lawmakers to amend or overturn the law.