Hours before a new federal law banning TikTok was to take effect in the United States, the social media app showed users a pop-up message saying it would be “temporarily unavailable” starting Sunday.
“We regret that the US law banning TikTok will go into effect on January 19,” the message said. “We are working to restore our service in the US as quickly as possible.”
TikTok, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance and is under investigation due to national security concerns, appears to be preparing its users to go offline. At midnight, it was unclear whether the app would still be available in US app stores or how well it would fare.
The law has a provision to penalize app store operators like Apple and Google and internet hosting companies like Oracle for distributing or maintaining the TikTok app. Under the law, those companies face fines of up to $5,000 per user who accesses the app.
TikTok’s message to US users comes after the Supreme Court’s decision on Friday upheld the law, giving ByteDance until Sunday to sell the app or otherwise face a ban. The legislation passed Congress last year with an overwhelming majority and was signed by President Biden. TikTok had hoped to win its legal challenge against the law, but was unsuccessful.
TikTok made a last-minute statement to the Biden administration and newly elected President Donald J. Trump had appealed to both of them to opt out of the law. No one – including the US government – was entirely sure what would happen to the law once it went into effect. The United States has never blocked an app used by millions of Americans overnight.
This development is a big blow for TikTok and ByteDance. TikTok has approximately 170 million users in the United States, some of the app’s most lucrative customers. In legal filings, TikTok has said that even temporarily disappearing could lead to its demise, with users and creators leaving for other platforms and never returning even after the ban is lifted.
The situation was further complicated by the legislation’s start date falling in the final days of Mr Biden’s presidency. A White House spokeswoman suggested on Saturday that the Biden administration would not begin fining companies on Sunday.
“We see no reason to take action against TikTok or other companies in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office on Monday,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement. “We have made our position clear and unambiguous: It will be up to the next administration to take action to enforce this law.”
Mr Trump said on Saturday he would “probably” find a way to give TikTok a 90-day extension after taking office on Monday. The law gives the President the ability to extend the deadline for the sale only if there is “significant progress” toward a deal that would return TikTok to a non-Chinese owner. It was unclear how that extension would work if the ban had already gone into effect.
The atmosphere on TikTok was sad on Saturday. Alix Earl, a content creator with 7.2 million followers Found fame on the app in 2022Posted tearful videos expressing condolences on the platform.
“I feel like I’m going through heartbreak,” Ms. Earl wrote. a video“This platform is more than an app or a job for me. I have a lot of memories here. I have posted every day for the last 6 years of my life. I’ve shared with my friends, family, relationships, personal struggles, secrets.
Ms Earl said she was in “denial” about the ban.