TikTok returns after 14 hours of ban. The hugely popular video app was taken offline Saturday night in compliance with a law that effectively banned the service nationwide unless it splits off from ByteDance, its China-based owner. Last week, the Supreme Court upheld the law.
On Saturday, Google and Apple removed the app from their stores, a requirement of the ban, which also forbids web-hosting companies from providing back-end support to the app.
When Biden officials said they would leave enforcement of the law up to the Trump administration, web-hosting services were not confident they would not be prosecuted. The law outlines stiff penalties for violations that could cost the companies billions.
On Sunday morning, President-elect Donald Trump effectively reversed the black-out with a single post to his Truth Social social network: He issued a statement vowing to pause the law and said he would extend a liability shield to tech companies that support TikTok, as the app’s future is worked out by his incoming administration. Not long after, companies that provide web support, including firms Oracle and Akamai, restored the TikTok website and app for millions of users in the U.S
