TikTok said it was restoring access to the video app after President-elect Donald Trump promised that companies that distribute and host the platform would not be held liable for violating a U.S. ban that took effect on Sunday .
“In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service,” the company said Sunday afternoon. “We thank President Trump for providing necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will not face any penalties for providing TikTok.”
TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, said it would work with Trump “on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States.”
As of Sunday afternoon, the web version of TikTok appeared to be working in the United States, but the app was not functional and did not appear on the Apple and Google app stores. It remains unclear whether Apple and Google were assured by the president-elect’s guarantees or if they needed more time to restore service. Apple and Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump said he would issue an order on Monday ensuring that companies that allowed TikTok to remain in service would not be held liable for violating a ban passed by Congress.
TikTok had suspended the service this weekend ahead of a Sunday deadline stemming from the law that required ByteDance to sell the video app in order to avoid a ban on app stores allowing downloads.
At midnight Saturday, companies including Apple, Google and Oracle, which provide cloud services to TikTok, were banned from providing services to distribute or host the app and faced fines of $5,000 per user. Oracle did not respond to a request for comment.
“I ask companies not to let TikTok remain in the dark!” Trump said on its Truth Social platform on Sunday.
“I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the deadline before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can reach an agreement to protect our national security,” the president-elect said.
Mike Waltz, a Florida lawmaker who will become national security adviser at Trump’s inauguration on Monday, told CNN that the president-elect would consider allowing continued Chinese ownership, but with “firewalls” to ensure that the app’s data is “protected here on American soil.”
Trump said in his Truth Social article that he would like the United States to “have a 50% stake in a joint venture.”
“By doing this, we are saving TikTok, keeping it in good hands and allowing it to say (sic) up,” Trump said. “Without US approval, there is no TikTok. With our approval, it’s worth hundreds of billions of dollars, if not billions.
“My initial idea is a joint venture between the current owners and/or new owners, in which the United States would get a 50 percent stake in a joint venture created between the United States and whatever purchase we choose .”
U.S. lawmakers and security officials say the Chinese government could use TikTok to obtain Americans’ personal information, which could facilitate spying. TikTok denies that China has any control over the app.
The Supreme Court upheld the ban on Friday. Trump said Saturday he would “most likely” extend by 90 days the deadline to sell TikTok, which has been downloaded by 170 million Americans.
But some Republican lawmakers, including Tom Cotton, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Nebraska Sen. Pete Ricketts, said in a statement that there was “no legal basis for any extension.”
“Any company that hosts, distributes, maintains or otherwise facilitates communist-controlled TikTok could face hundreds of billions of dollars in ruinous liability under the law, not only from the DOJ (Department of Justice ), but also under securities law, shareholder suits, and state AGs,” Cotton said in an article on X. “Think about it. »
A person involved in drafting the law said there was no provision for an extension once the Jan. 19 deadline passes.
It allowed a 90-day extension if certain conditions were met – including proof of “significant progress” towards an assignment and “binding agreements” to enable enforcement – but only if before the deadline.
During his first term, Trump issued an order banning TikTok from operating in the United States, but it was blocked by the courts. He also tried to strike a deal that would ensure China could not access the data. Chinese law requires Chinese companies to hand over data when the government requires it.
Trump voiced opposition to Congress’ divestment or ban legislation last year, saying it would help Facebook, which banned him from its platform for two years. Facebook competes with TikTok through its Instagram application.
On Friday, Trump had his first call with President Xi Jinping since leaving the White House in 2021. He said they discussed TikTok, although the Chinese readout of the call did not mention the app.
Vice President Han Zheng will also attend the inauguration on Monday in place of Xi, invited by Trump.
When asked why Trump was launching a “charm offensive” with China, Waltz told CBS that a relationship with the Chinese leader was necessary to resolve issues ranging from the flow of Chinese precursor chemicals used to make fentanyl to tensions in the South China Sea.
“(Trump) thinks he can only make such deals with this type of regime by having a relationship,” he added.
Additional reporting by George Hammond