TikTok returns to app stores in the US including Apple and Google
14 February 2025, 05:44
TikTok is back on US app stores after President Donald Trump postponed a ban on the Chinese-owned video-sharing platform.
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The popular app, which has over 170 million users in the US alone, briefly went dark for American users last month as the deadline of its ban neared.
But, on the day he entered office, Trump granted a 75-day extension for the app’s owners to combine with the law or face the ban.
Trump announced the decision in a post to his Truth Social account a day after TikTok shut down for millions of its users in the US
The president said "I’m asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark!
"I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security."
He proposed a 'joint venture' between the United States and the current owners or new owners, in which the US would own 50% of the company.
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"By doing this, we save TikTok, keep it in good hands and allow it to say up.
"Without U.S. approval, there is no Tik Tok. With our approval, it is worth hundreds of billions of dollars - maybe trillions.
"Therefore, my initial thought is a joint venture between the current owners and/or new owners whereby the U.S. gets a 50% ownership in a joint venture set up between the U.S. and whichever purchase we so choose."
The app was removed from Apple and Google's app stores, which were prohibited from offering the platform under a law that required TikTok's China-based parent company ByteDance to sell the platform or face a US ban.
The company that runs TikTok said in a post on X that Trump had provided “the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans”.
When it went dark, Americans trying to use the app saw the message: "A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the US. Unfortunately that means you can't use TikTok for now.
"We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!"