United States App stores of Apple and Google restored ByteDance’s TikTok on Thursday following the assurance from US President Donald Trump.
As per the legislation signed by former U.S. President Joe Biden in 2024, the Chinese-owned short video app had to either undergo divestiture by January 19, 2025, or face a ban in the U.S. on national security grounds, amid fears that China could use the app to spy on 170 million American users.
Following the legislation, the app being used by nearly half of the American population was not available for a while in January along with other apps such as Lemon8 and CapCut with the same parent.
President Trump after assuming office on January 20, delayed the enforcement of the ban by 75 days by signing an executive order allowing TikTok to continue its operations in the U.S. temporarily.
Following Trump’s assurances that no hefty fines would be put on the app, the company and its partners resumed the service however since then the app was yet to return to app stores.
Trump’s directive on Thursday assured app stores that they would not face any penalties for allowing the app to be installed and updated on their platforms, which subsequently led to its return.
Trump further shared his intentions to extend the 75-day ban on TikTok. He had previously supported the ban but has now softened his stance. However, if a deal is not reached by early April, another shutdown of the app can be expected.
