TikTok was unavailable for US-based users late Saturday after the company failed to thwart a nationwide shutdown required under a new national security law that takes effect Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S.,\u201d according to an in-app pop-up message. \u201cUnfortunately, that means you can\u2019t use TikTok for now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
President-elect Donald Trump said Saturday he would \u201cmost likely\u201d give TikTok a 90-day reprieve from the law, providing Chinese-owned parent company Bytedance Ltd. more time to find a buyer. Trump also told NBC in an exclusive interview that he\u2019d probably announce it on Monday, after he is sworn in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office,\u201d the notification continued. \u201cPlease stay tuned!\u201d The note also directs users to a page to \u201clearn more,\u201d where they can download their TikTok data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was TikTok\u2019s choice to suspend availability late Saturday. The controversial law requires tech companies that host or distribute TikTok in the US \u2013 such as Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc.\u2019s Google and Oracle Corp. \u2013 to stop doing so on Jan. 19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Removing the app from the app stores would not have shut off the service immediately; TikTokers who\u2019d already downloaded it would have been able to continue using it, but would not have been able to install software updates. The app would have deteriorated over time until becoming unusable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By preemptively taking the platform offline all at once, and earlier than anticipated, TikTok has a chance of mobilizing its enormous user base into protest. It\u2019s possible users will demand action from political leaders like Trump to reverse the ban. TikTok says that 170 million Americans \u2013 half the country\u2019s population \u2013 use the app.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The law, signed last April by President Joe Biden, required ByteDance to sell its US TikTok business to address national security concerns, or face a shutdown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
TikTok has previously tried to use its popularity to change its fate. The company urged TikTokers to call Congress to protest the bill and try to prevent it from passing when it was first introduced. The strategy backfired at the time, stoking lawmakers\u2019 fears about the app\u2019s influence over US users.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But given Trump\u2019s recent support of the app, it could be more effective this time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump, who tried to ban TikTok during his first presidency over national security concerns, has since warmed up to the social media platform, speculating that it helped him win young voters during the election. Earlier this month, he unsuccessfully made a push for the Supreme Court to delay the law\u2019s divestiture deadline so he could negotiate a solution once in office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
TikTok CEO Shou Chew has also spent time with Trump at Mar-a-Lago and is expected to attend his inauguration on Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even before TikTok made the app unavailable, loyal creators were organizing online to pressure Trump to follow through on pledges he made on the campaign trail to be TikTok\u2019s savior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is a promise Trump made and it is a promise he used to get a large number of young people to vote for him,\u201d TikTok influencer Tiffany Cianci told Bloomberg ahead of the company\u2019s recent appearance before the Supreme Court. \u201cWe are calling on him to deliver immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n