INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
TikTok began restoring its services on Sunday after President-elect Donald Trump said he would revive the app’s access in the U.S
when he returns to power on Monday, Reuters reported.“Frankly, we have no choice
We have to save it,” Trump said at a rally on Sunday ahead of his inauguration, adding that the U.S
will seek a joint venture to restore the short-video sharing app used by 170 million Americans.In a message to users hours before the rally,
TikTok said: “As a result of president Trump’s efforts, TikTok is back in the U.S.”TikTok also issued an earlier statement after U.S
users reported being able to access the Chinese-owned service’s website while the far more widely used TikTok app itself began coming back
online for some users with just a few basic services
As of Sunday evening, the app remained unavailable for download on U.S
app stores.“In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service,” TikTok said in the earlier
statement that also thanked Trump for “providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no
penalties (for) providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive.”TikTok’s public
thanks to Trump, the day before he takes office, comes at a tense moment in U.S.-China relations
Trump has said he intends to place tariffs on China but has also indicated he hopes to have more direct contact with China’s leader.The
Chinese Embassy in Washington on Friday accused the U.S
of using unfair state power to suppress TikTok
“China will take all necessary measures to resolutely safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,” a spokesperson said.TikTok stopped
users late on Saturday before a law shutting it down on national security grounds took effect on Sunday
officials had warned that under Chinese parent company ByteDance, there was a risk of Americans’ data being misused, read the report.Trump
said he would “extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national
security.”“I would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture,” he wrote on Truth Social.Trump said
the executive order would specify there would be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before his order.Trump
had earlier said he would most likely give TikTok a 90-day reprieve from the ban after he takes office, a promise TikTok cited in a notice
posted to users on the app.“A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S
Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now
We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office
Please stay tuned,” a message notified users of TikTok, which disappeared from Apple (AAPL.O), and Google app stores late on
Saturday.Trump saving TikTok represents a reversal in stance from his first term in office
In 2020, he aimed to ban the app over concerns the company was sharing Americans’ personal info with the Chinese government
More recently, Trump has said he has “a warm spot in my heart for TikTok,” crediting the app with helping him win over young voters in
the 2024 election.In August 2020, Trump signed an executive order giving ByteDance 90 days to sell TikTok but then blessed a deal structured
as a partnership rather than a divestment that would have included both Oracle (ORCL.N), and Walmart (WMT.N), taking stakes in the new
company, Reuters reported.Not everyone in Trump’s Republican Party agreed with efforts to get around the law and “Save
TikTok”.Republican senators Tom Cotton and Pete Ricketts said in a joint statement: “Now that the law has taken effect, there is no
legal basis for any kind of ‘extension’ of its effective date
For TikTok to come back online in the future, ByteDance must agree to a sale that satisfies the law’s qualified-divestiture requirements
by severing all ties between TikTok and Communist China.”The U.S
has never banned a major social media platform
The law passed overwhelmingly by Congress gives the incoming Trump administration sweeping authority to ban or seek the sale of other
Chinese-owned apps.Other apps owned by ByteDance, including video editing app CapCut and lifestyle social app Lemon8, were also offline and
app stores as of late Saturday.Apple and Google (GOOGL.O), did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Web searches for “VPN”
spiked in the minutes after U.S
users lost access to TikTok, according to Google Trends.Users on Instagram fretted about whether they would still receive merchandise they
had bought on TikTok Shop, the video platform’s e-commerce arm.Marketing firms reliant on TikTok have rushed to prepare contingency plans
in what one executive described as a “hair on fire” moment after months of conventional wisdom saying that a solution would materialize
to keep the app running.TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew plans to attend the U.S
presidential inauguration and attend a rally with Trump on Sunday, a source told Reuters.Suitors including former Los Angeles Dodgers owner
Frank McCourt have expressed interest in the fast-growing business that analysts estimate could be worth as much as $50 billion
Media reports say Beijing has also held talks about selling TikTok’s U.S
operations to billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk, though the company has denied that.U.S
search engine startup Perplexity AI submitted a bid on Saturday to ByteDance for Perplexity to merge with TikTok U.S., a source familiar
with the company’s plans told Reuters
Perplexity would merge with TikTok U.S
and create a new entity by combining the merged company with other partners, the person added.Privately held ByteDance is about 60% owned by
institutional investors such as BlackRock and General Atlantic, while its founders and employees own 20% each
It has more than 7,000 employees in the U.S.The post TikTok is restoring service, thanks Trump first appeared on Ariana News.
