As President Donald Trump postponed a ban on the Chinese-owned social media app and promised the internet giants they wouldn’t face penalties for distributing or maintaining it, TikTok made a comeback to the US app stores on Thursday.
Before a legislation went into force on January 19 requiring its Chinese owner, ByteDance, to either sell the well-known short video app on national security grounds or risk being banned, the app, which is used by almost half of all Americans, went quiet for a brief period last month.
The next day, President Trump signed an executive order to temporarily permit TikTok to continue operating in the US by delaying the implementation of the ban by 75 days.
Google and Apple kept TikTok out of their US app stores, despite the fact that the app returned to operation following President Trump’s promises.
The US app that was downloaded the second most last year, TikTok, said on Thursday that its most recent app was finally accessible for download.
Analysts speculate that the delay may have occurred because Apple and Google were looking for guarantees that they would not face legal action for hosting or distributing the software.
According to Trump’s decree, businesses who operate digital marketplaces or mobile application stores where consumers can browse, download, and update programs won’t be penalised for maintaining the TikTok app.
The industry research firm Sensor Tower reports that TikTok has over 52 million downloads in 2024.
In the US last year, Google Play accounted for 48% of its total downloads, compared to roughly 52% from the Apple App Store, according to Sensor Tower.
In response to national security concerns and worries that China would use the video-sharing app to spy on American users, then-President Joe Biden signed a measure in April requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok’s US assets or risk being banned.
The law passed last year provides the government broad authority to ban or pursue the sale of other Chinese-owned applications, yet the US has never banned a major social media platform.
Trump hinted at the possibility of extending his 75-day TikTok deadline on Thursday.
A number of prospective purchasers, including former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, have shown interest in the rapidly expanding company, which analysts say could be worth up to $50 billion (about Rs. 4,34,130 crore), as a result of the turbulence at TikTok.
According to Trump, he was in discussions with several individuals regarding the acquisition of TikTok and would probably make a decision regarding the app’s future in February.
CREDIT: Gadget360, Allneeds
Related News:
No products in the cart.