TikTok Resumes Service in the U.S. After Brief Outage
WASHINGTON:TikTok resumed service in the United States on Sunday after a brief outage, which occurred following the implementation of a law banning the app on national security grounds. The service disruption came after a deadline passed for TikTokβs Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest its U.S. operations.
The reversal of the ban was attributed to President-elect Donald Trump, who is set to take office on Monday. Although President Joe Biden’s outgoing administration had previously stated it would not enforce the ban, the shutdown occurred late Saturday as the deadline loomed.
On Sunday, as millions of users were locked out of the app, Trump announced plans to issue an executive order delaying the ban, giving time to reach a deal. He also proposed that the U.S. take part-ownership of TikTok, suggesting a 50% stake in a joint venture. Trump speculated that this move could increase the app’s value significantly, potentially reaching “hundreds of billions or even trillions” of dollars.
In response to Trump’s intervention, TikTok issued a statement on X, thanking the president for providing the clarity needed to restore service and ensuring that providers would not face penalties for offering the app to U.S. users. TikTok confirmed that it was in the process of bringing the service back online, which was completed by Sunday afternoon. However, the company did not comment on Trump’s suggestion for U.S. ownership.
