Last night, TikTok officially went dark in the United States. In addition to TikTok itself going offline, Apple also removed the app from the App Store.
Apple has now addressed the TikTok ban for the first time, saying it is βobligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates.β
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Amid the TikTok shutdown, in a rare move, Apple published a statement and a support document listing all affected apps that are inaccessible in the U.S. The iPhone maker typically doesnβt publish information for when it blocks apps. Notably, other ByteDance apps, including CapCut, Lemon8 β which surged in the last few months β and [β¦]
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With TikTok, CapCut, and Marvel Snap shut down in the US, Apple has taken the unusual step of articulating why itβs following the law banning ByteDance apps and removing them from the App Stores for the Mac, iPhone, and other devices.
Before the ban went into effect, the Biden administration released a statement saying enforcement of the law βmust fall to the next Administration.β Still, it didnβt stop the law from taking effect this weekend after TikTokβs appeal to the Supreme Court failed.
The support page from Apple says:
Apple is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates. Pursuant to the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, apps developed by ByteDance Ltd. and its subsidiaries β including TikTok, CapCut, Lemon8, and others β will no longer be available for download or updates on the App Store for users in the United States starting January 19, 2025.
It goes on to say that people who already have the apps installed wonβt have them removed, but at least for the time being, redownloading or restoring them on a new device will not be possible, along with making any in-app purchases or subscriptions, but subscriptions can be canceled.
Meanwhile, people who visit the US from other countries where theyβre still available wonβt be able to download or update apps while inside US borders.
Apple also provided a list of βsomeβ of the apps linked to ByteDance that are affected:
Now, more than an entire day is left before the Trump administration is sworn in. TikTok pushed for a more definitive statement about the legal risks providers like Apple and Google might face for defying the law in the meantime, but it never came as the White House called TikTokβs response a βstunt.β
Now Apple is making clear that until something changes, itβs following the law as written, and it appears Google is doing the same thing. Google, Apple, and TikTok have not responded to requests for comment from The Verge.
The divest-or-ban law aimed at TikTok is also taking down other ByteDance-linked apps, including the popular card game Marvel Snap. The app suddenly cut off access Saturday night, seemingly without warning, surprising gamers who werenβt aware of its connection to ByteDance.
The card game battler set in the Marvel universe is developed by Second Dinner, which is based in California. But the game is published by Nuverse, a company owned by ByteDance. As a result, itβs subject to the same shutdown order.
In a statement on X, Second Dinner called the takedown a surprise and said, βMarvel Snap isnβt going anywhere. Weβre actively working on getting the game up as soon as possible and will update you once we have more to share.β
Just before the calendar turned over to January 19th, 2025, the game disappeared from the App Store for iPad and iPhone players and from Google Play for players on Android. For players on PC, the game is still listed in Steam at the moment, but many players are reporting they were signed out and canβt sign back in.
An in-game message now tells players:
Sorry, Marvel Snap isnβt available right now
A law banning Marvel Snap has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you canβt use Marvel Snap for now. Rest assured, weβre working to restore our service in the U.S. Please stay tuned!
Oddly, unlike TikTok, it doesnβt appear that players were given much warning about the lawβs effect, and many people may not have realized it was even connected to ByteDance, including people who were still spending money on in-game items expecting to be able to keep playing it.
Unfortunately, MARVEL SNAP is temporarily unavailable in U.S. app stores and is unavailable to play in the U.S.
β Second Dinner (@seconddinner) January 19, 2025
In a surprise to Second Dinner and our publisher Nuverse, MARVEL SNAP was affected by the takedown of TikTok late on Saturday, January 18th.
MARVEL SNAP isnβt goingβ¦
Other ByDance apps quickly disappeared from app stores along with TikTok, including Lemon8 and CapCut. The effect on other ByteDance-linked apps is mixed; however, it may take time to remove them. The Lark app that offers a Slack-like collaboration platform was available initially but has now been removed, while other Nuverse-published games, like Earth: Revival - Deep Underground and Ragnarok X: 3rd Anniversary, are still available in the App Store as of this writing, just after midnight ET on the 19th.
Update, January 19th: Noted reports that Marvel Snap PC players canβt log in and added a statement from game developer Second Dinner.
In addition to the in-app shutdown notice, TikTok is no longer available to download from the Google Play Store.
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The switch has flipped on the US TikTok ban. TikTok's app stoped working and was removed from the App Store and Google Play on Saturday night, just hours before the January 19 ban was expected to take effect.
People who have previously installed the app are instead greeted with a pop-up. "Sorry, TikTok isn't available right now," it says. "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."
The notice gives the option to close the app or "learn more," which directs users to TikTok's website, which has similar language. Existing users can also download their data from the website. ByteDance's popular video editing app, CapCut, is also no longer available within the US.Β
Following the passage of the "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Apps Act" by President Biden, TikTok had six months to divest itself from Chinese parent company ByteDance. The company opted to fight the law, bringing a case to the Supreme Court claiming that its First Amendment rights were violated by the measure. The high court, with a limited amount of time to consider the case, ruled unanimously against the app.
As part of the ban, Apple's App Store, Google's Play Store and any other app marketplace must remove TikTok or be subject to a fine of $5,000 for every user in the US that downloads the app. White House officials said earlier in the week that the ban would not be enforced during President Joe Biden's final hours in office, but TikTok said that the government had "failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurance to the service providers that are integral to maintaining TikTok's availability to over 170 million Americans."
Multiple attempts have been made to ban TikTok in the US over concerns of spying, but this is the first time one has stuck, at least temporarily. President-elect Donald Trump was a major supporter of a ban during his first term in office and, ironically, is TikTok's only hope of surviving after his second inauguration. Earlier on Saturday, Trump told NBC News that he would "most likely" grant a 90-day extension to the company after taking office.
Should an extension come, it's not clear what kind of arrangement the company may work out to remain in the US after all. Perplexity AI has reportedly submitted a bid to merge with TikTok's stateside operations, CNBC reported. Others, including investor Kevin O'Leary (of Shark Tank fame) have also made proposals or expressed interest in buying the service.Β
Additional reporting by Karissa Bell.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/tiktok-is-no-longer-available-in-the-us-040204115.html?src=rss
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Β© TikTok
TikTok has gone dark in the U.S., the result of a federal law that bans the popular short-form video app for millions of Americans β at least for now. TikTok users began receiving a message about the ban around 10:30 p.m. Eastern. As of Saturday evening, the app was also no longer available in the [β¦]
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