You are a TikTok user and as you woke this morning on Sunday January 19, 2025, you got this message that TikTok was not available, what did you think?
The company had turned off its app for its 170 million US users on Saturday. President-elect Donald Trump said he will issue an executive order on Monday to delay a TikTok ban.
TikTok goes dark in the U.S.! Just hours before a new ban law took effect, users were met with a shocking message: “You cannot use TikTok for now.
What does this mean for millions of creators and fans? Could this be the end—or just a pause? Let us know your thoughts!
TikTok has voluntarily ceased operations in the U.S. after the Supreme Court upheld a federal law requiring its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest from the platform or face a ban. The law, passed last year, set a January 19 deadline for compliance, citing national security concerns over potential data sharing with China. ByteDance challenged the law but was rejected by a unanimous Supreme Court ruling.
On Saturday night, TikTok users in the U.S. were met with a shutdown message, as the app disappeared from major app stores ahead of the deadline. The Biden administration deferred enforcement of the law to the incoming Trump administration, but TikTok preemptively went offline, citing legal uncertainties.
While President-elect Trump has signaled a willingness to negotiate TikTok’s future, including a potential deadline extension, the platform’s prospects remain uncertain. ByteDance has argued that divestiture is unfeasible due to China’s restrictions on exporting TikTok’s algorithm. Even with a sale, rebuilding the platform without the algorithm would take years, fundamentally altering its functionality.
The bipartisan law reflects growing U.S. concerns about foreign data collection, and Congress has emphasized the need to address security risks posed by Chinese-owned apps. Legal experts note that enforcement could still lead to penalties for companies hosting or distributing TikTok if the ban isn’t lifted.
TikTok’s CEO expressed optimism about working with the Trump administration for a resolution, but the app’s long-term availability in the U.S. remains unclear without a sale or legislative change.
Personally, this ban does not affect me, the ban does not affect me that much. I really haven’t used the app that much, but it does affect many people who do make money on the platform. I hope they all find another platform which they can profit from.