TikTok’s US ban delayed for 75 days

TikTok was officially banned in the United States last Friday with the app being removed from app stores and remaining inaccessible for a total of 13 hours. With the transition of power from President Joe Biden to President Donald Trump, we’re seeing a change of heart as one of the 47th US President’s first executive orders instructed the US attorney general to delay the enforcement of the TikTok ban for 75 days as of January 20, 2025.

This means that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, now has until April 5, 2025, to divest its stake in TikTok to a US-based company. The new executive order instructs the US attorney general and Department of Justice not to take action in enforcing the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act and to “pursue a resolution that protects national security while saving a platform (TikTok) used by 170 million Americans.”

This timing also interferes with my ability to negotiate a resolution to avoid an abrupt shutdown of the TikTok platform while addressing national security concerns.

Accordingly, I am instructing the Attorney General not to take any action to enforce the Act for a period of 75 days from today to allow my Administration an opportunity to determine the appropriate course forward in an orderly way that protects national security while avoiding an abrupt shutdown of a communications platform used by millions of Americans. – President Donald Trump

Donald Trump has publicly proposed a joint venture between ByteDance and the US government where the latter would own 50% of TikTok. It remains to be seen how this scenario plays out, but for now, TikTok will resume as normal in the US and the next two and a half months will be crucial to the platform’s long-term future.

Source