TikTok service restored in the US after promises that ban won't be enforced
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The ban on TikTok in the US turned out to last only one day. China-based social media site TikTok has returned from a one-day hiatus in the US, following assurances from the incoming Trump administration that it will face no penalties for restoring service to its US users now.
Apple and other companies temporarily took the TikTok app off their respective App Store, which complied with a law passed by Congress banning the service in the US if the parent company failed to find a US buyer by January 19th. The short-lived ban affected numerous TikTok-related apps and services, including TikTok Studio, TikTok Shop Seller Center, CapCut, Lemon8, Hypic, Lark collaboration software, the AI study companion Gauth, and the game Marvel Snap.
At 12:27pm Eastern time, TikTok posted a note announcing the quick return on X.com. "In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service.". The post went on to imply that TikTok will continue to work with the incoming administration on a "long-term solution" to keep the service viable in the US. The post referred to the legislative ban on the service as "arbitrary censorship," and the reversal a "strong stand" for the First Amendment.
When the ban took effect, Apple had posted a bulletin on its support site clarifying how the original ban would work. According to the page, the company complied with the law and removed the app and its associated apps from the App Store. Apple noted that users who already had the app on their mobile devices could continue to use the apps as normal, but could not redownload or restore the app if it was deleted. Had the ban persisted, users would also not have been able to update the app, which would eventually render it unworkable.
