“Sorry, TikTok isn’t out there proper now,” the message learn.
Hours earlier than a federal law banning TikTok from the United States was set to take impact on Sunday, the Chinese language-owned social media app went darkish, and U.S. customers may not entry movies on the platform. As an alternative, the app greeted them with a message that mentioned “a regulation banning TikTok has been enacted.”
“We’re lucky that President Trump has indicated that he’ll work with us on an answer,” the message mentioned. “Please keep tuned!”
As well as, TikTok’s sister app, Lemon8, stopped working and confirmed U.S. customers a message saying that it “isn’t out there proper now.” Each TikTok and Lemon8 are owned by ByteDance, a Chinese language web big.
Apple mentioned it eliminated TikTok and different ByteDance apps, together with Lemon8, from its app retailer, and customers mentioned that Google’s U.S. app retailer additionally eliminated TikTok.
TikTok grew to become unavailable after the Supreme Court decision on Friday upholding the law, which requires ByteDance to promote the app by Sunday or in any other case face a ban. The regulation was handed overwhelmingly by Congress final 12 months and signed by President Biden. TikTok, which has confronted nationwide safety considerations for its Chinese language ties, had believed it may win its authorized problem to the regulation, however failed.
The blackout capped a chaotic stretch for TikTok, which had made last-minute pleas to each the Biden administration and President-elect Donald J. Trump for a method out of the regulation. Till Saturday evening, nobody — together with the U.S. authorities — was fully certain what would occur to it when the regulation took impact. America has by no means blocked an app utilized by tens of hundreds of thousands of Individuals basically in a single day.
The regulation has a provision to penalize app retailer operators like Apple and Google and web internet hosting firms like Oracle for distributing or sustaining the TikTok app. Underneath the regulation, these firms face penalties as excessive as $5,000 per consumer who can entry the app.
TikTok, Apple and Oracle didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark. Google declined to remark.
For TikTok and ByteDance, the developments are a major blow. TikTok has roughly 170 million U.S. customers, who’re a number of the app’s most profitable prospects. In authorized filings, TikTok has mentioned that even a short lived disappearance may kneecap it, with customers and creators leaving for different platforms and by no means returning even when a ban was lifted.
The scenario was additional difficult by the regulation’s begin date falling within the last days of Mr. Biden’s presidency. A White Home spokeswoman urged on Saturday that the Biden administration wouldn’t begin fining firms on Sunday.
“We see no cause for TikTok or different firms to take actions within the subsequent few days earlier than the Trump administration takes workplace on Monday,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the White Home press secretary, mentioned in a press release. “We now have laid out our place clearly and straightforwardly: actions to implement this regulation will fall to the following administration.”
Spokesmen for the White Home and the Division of Justice didn’t reply to requests for remark after TikTok went offline.
Mr. Trump mentioned on Saturday he would “probably” discover a method to give TikTok a 90-day extension as soon as he takes workplace on Monday. The regulation provides the president the power to increase the deadline for a sale provided that there’s “vital progress” towards a deal that may put TikTok within the palms of a non-Chinese language proprietor. It was not clear how that extension may work if the ban had already taken impact.
Mr. Trump has additionally indicated he may signal an government order to bypass the ban of the app. TikTok’s chief government, Shou Chew, is expected to attend Mr. Trump’s inauguration on Monday.
On Saturday, the mood on TikTok was somber. Alix Earle, a content material creator with 7.2 million followers who rose to fame on the app in 2022, posted tearful movies mourning the platform.
“I really feel like I’m going Via heartbreak,” Ms. Earle wrote in one video. “This platform is greater than an app or a job to me. I’ve so many Reminiscences on right here. I’ve posted day by day for the previous 6 years of my life. I’ve shared my associates, household, relationships, private struggles, secrets and techniques.”
Different customers spent their last moments on the app recreating viral dances. The “For You” web page stuffed with montages of customers’ favourite traits and songs, many relationship again to the early days of the pandemic, when the app soared in reputation.
By 9 p.m. Jap on Saturday evening, TikTok was exhibiting U.S. customers a pop up message that mentioned the app would quickly cease working.
It mentioned the regulation would “power us to make our providers quickly unavailable.” Shortly thereafter, TikTok went darkish.
Late Saturday night, Ms. Earle discovered solace by showing on a rival social media platform: Instagram.
“I used to be simply not anticipating that for this Saturday evening,” she mentioned of what occurred to TikTok as she livestreamed on Instagram. RedNote, a Chinese language video app that has grow to be common in current days, wouldn’t grow to be a long-term substitute, she mentioned.
“We’re simply gonna must make it somewhat extra enjoyable on right here, that’s what I’m considering,” she mentioned of Instagram.
On Sunday morning in China, TikTok’s notification to U.S. customers that it could droop service was a trending matter on Weibo, a well-liked social media platform just like X.
“It is a darkish second within the improvement of the web,” Hu Xijin, a former editor in chief of the state-run Global Times, wrote on Weibo. America had set an instance for “your entire Western world” to silence voices on-line within the identify of nationwide safety, he wrote.
Diao Daming, a professor of worldwide relations at Renmin College of China, referred to as TikTok “the primary large take a look at that Trump 2.0 has to face.” Mr. Trump’s actions on TikTok may take a look at his relationship with “China hawks” in Washington, Mr. Diao wrote in a commentary revealed on state media.
Claire Fu contributed reporting from Seoul. Nico Grant and Tripp Mickle contributed reporting from San Francisco. David McCabe contributed reporting from Washington.
