TikTok restored its U.S. service after the company temporarily shut down access to its app and website for its 170 million American users, shortly before a nationwide ban on the platform went into effect at midnight Sunday, Jan. 19. TikTok’s announcement comes after President-elect Donald Trump earlier in the day said he would issue an executive order on his first day in office –– Monday, Jan. 20 –– giving the platform’s China-based parent company, ByteDance, more time to work out a deal.
“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 said.
“Americans deserve to see our exciting Inauguration on Monday, as well as other events and conversations.”
Trump added he would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture to keep the video-sharing app active. The president-elect said, “My initial thought is a joint venture between the current owners and/or new owners whereby the U.S. gets a 50% ownership in a joint venture set up between the U.S. and whichever purchase we so choose.”
Following Trump’s announcement, TikTok issued a statement saying it would be restoring service to the 170 million Americans who use its platform.
“In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service. 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,” TikTok said.
“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.”
Despite President Joe Biden signaling that he would not enforce the ban, and would instead leave the decision to President-elect Trump, the platform shut itself down to avoid the risk of potentially heavy fines for hosting access to the platform in the U.S.
During the shutdown, a notice in the app directly credited President-elect Trump, saying “We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office.”
TikTok going dark for its American users was the culmination of a years-long bipartisan push to ban the app. During Trump’s first term in 2020, he threatened to ban the app over its ties to the Chinese government.
In 2024, Biden signed the law that put the current ban in place, which gave the app’s owners until Sunday to either shut down or sell to a buyer not defined as a “foreign adversary of the United States.”
Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., introduced the original bill and it passed with veto-proof majorities and support from both Democrats and Republicans.
But as the ban neared, multiple lawmakers changed their stances. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., who initially voted for the ban, joined Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., in their push for a last-ditch bill to rescind the ban.
Despite Trump saying it was likely he would work to develop a solution that would restore Americans’ access to the app, Republican Sens. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., blocked the bill from advancing by objecting to it.
The Supreme Court unanimously rejected TikTok’s challenge to the ban, saying that the national security concerns underpinning the law took priority over its role as a speech platform. The court ruled that the ban did not infringe on the First Amendment rights of the company or its users.
Trump has signaled that tech issues, including the future of TikTok, are top priorities for his incoming administration. Executives from the largest apps and tech companies will be present for his inauguration on Monday, Jan. 20, including TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew.
(Disclosure: Sen. Pete Ricketts is the son of Joe Ricketts, CEO and Founder of Straight Arrow News.)
