TikTok announced on Sunday that it was restoring its service to users in the U.S. after shutting it down briefly the night before.
The company explained that it worked with its service providers to bring the platform back online after President-elect Donald Trump gave assurances that these providers wouldn’t face penalties for supporting TikTok.
In a post on X, TikTok said:
“We’re restoring our service in the U.S. and are thankful to President Trump for his support. This allows TikTok to continue serving over 170 million Americans and supporting 7 million small businesses. It’s a win for free speech and against unfair censorship. We will also work with President Trump on a long-term solution to keep TikTok in the U.S.”
Before TikTok shut down its service, Trump posted on Truth Social, urging the app to stay available. He said he wanted TikTok to broadcast his inauguration on Monday and promised to issue an executive order to delay the law banning TikTok.
The law, which was set to take effect on Sunday, bans TikTok unless its Chinese owner, ByteDance, sells the company to a non-Chinese buyer. Trump’s order would delay the ban for 90 days and protect companies that kept TikTok running before the ban was delayed.
TikTok’s service slowly returned on Sunday, starting with access via web browsers and later on the app itself. Users were greeted with a message saying, “Welcome back! Thanks for your patience. President Trump’s efforts have brought TikTok back to the U.S.” However, the app remained unavailable for download on Apple’s and Google’s app stores.
The law banning TikTok was signed in April by President Joe Biden, but his administration announced it would not enforce the ban, leaving that task to the incoming Trump administration. Despite earlier support for the ban, both Biden and Trump appeared to change their positions, with Trump promising to save the app.
