TikTok has sent notices to its US users that the Chinese platform is temporarily suspending operations in the country effective January 19 due to a ban by US authorities.
“We regret that a law that bans TikTok and forces us to temporarily disable access to our services will go into effect on January 19. We are working to restore our service in the US as soon as possible and appreciate your support“, the message to users reads.
TikTok said on Friday that the platform will cease operations in the US on January 19 unless it receives clear assurances from the outgoing Joe Biden administration that the ban will not result in fines for the company. As explained by the television company ABC, app stores and hosting providers may “find themselves on the hook“ after the ban comes into force if they continue to provide services to TikTok. The Department of Justice will have the right to impose and collect fines from them of up to $5 thousand for each user. The platform's audience in the US is 170 million users.
White House press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre said that, according to President Biden, the TikTok service “should continue to be available to Americans, but under American ownership or one that takes into account national security“. According to the act signed by Biden in April 2024, the Chinese company ByteDance, which owns TikTok, must sell the service to an American company by January 19 to avoid the ban.
The suspension of the service in the US may be short-lived. US President-elect Donald Trump said in an interview with NBC on Saturday that he is willing to postpone the ban on TikTok for 90 days immediately after taking office on January 20.
Previously, a bid to buy the service's US assets was made by the non-profit organization Project Liberty, owned by billionaire Frank McCourt. The media also named Elon Musk as a potential buyer.
ByteDance's proposal to merge with TikTok was made by the US company Perplexity AI, which develops artificial intelligence technologies, CNBC reported on Saturday.