TikTok Resumes Services in the U.S. with Trump's Assurance, Ending Closure Plans
TikTok has resumed its services in the U.S. on Sunday, January 19, 2025, local time. Donald Trump has changed his stance.
Tempo.co, Jakarta - resumed its services in the United States on Sunday, January 19, 2025, local time. This followed President Donald Trump's announcement that he would restore access to the app when he assumed office again on Monday, January 20, 2025, after winning the previous presidential election.
"Honestly, we have no other choice. We have to save it," Trump said at a rally on Sunday ahead of his inauguration, as quoted from a report on Monday. He added that the government would seek a joint venture to restore the app, which 170 million Americans use.
TikTok confirmed this restoration in a message to users. "Thanks to President Trump's efforts, TikTok is back in the U.S.," it said. TikTok also expressed gratitude to Trump for providing assurances to its service providers. "In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is currently working on restoring its services," TikTok said in an official statement.
TikTok's services had previously been 'disrupted' in the country on the night of Saturday, January 18, 2025, ahead of the enactment of a law banning the app on national security grounds. However, Trump stated that he would extend the grace period before the ban takes effect. "I want the U.S. to have a 50 percent ownership stake in the joint venture," Trump wrote on Truth Social, his social media platform.
The TikTok ban had previously been imposed due to concerns that user data, including that of U.S. users, could be misused by TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, which is based in China. Trump also raised these concerns at the end of his first term in office, 2017-2021. However, now, Trump has stated that the government will agree to protect U.S. national security. Trump praised TikTok as a tool that helped him attract young voters in the 2024 election.
Republican Senators Tom Cotton and Pete Ricketts were among those who opposed Trump's decision to save TikTok. In a joint statement, they emphasized that the law had already taken effect, so there was no legal basis for an 'extension' of its enforcement date. "For TikTok to be brought back online in the future, ByteDance must agree to a sale that meets the requirements of a qualified divestiture by severing all ties between TikTok and China," they both called for.
By Sunday night, was still unavailable for download on the Apple or Google app stores. Other ByteDance apps, such as CapCut and Lemon8, were still inactive in the U.S.
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