TikTok shuts down in US as ban takes effect

It also has a fan in Trump, who has credited the app with connecting him to younger voters, contributing to his election victory in November.

After discussing TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump told NBC News on Saturday he could activate a 90-day reprieve after he reclaims the Oval Office.

“I think that would be, certainly, an option that we look at. The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it’s appropriate,” he said, ahead of Monday’s inauguration.

“If I decide to do that, I’ll probably announce it on Monday.”

The law allows a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress towards a viable deal, but TikTok owner ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.

The administration of outgoing US President Joe Biden has said it will leave the matter to Trump, and White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre qualified TikTok’s latest statements as a “stunt”.

After the court defeat, TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew appealed to Trump, thanking him for his “commitment to work with us to find a solution”.

Trump “truly understands our platform,” he added.

Chew is also set to attend Trump’s inauguration on Monday.

The law requires Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, blocking new downloads. The companies could face penalties of up to $5000 per user who can access the app.

Oracle, which hosts TikTok’s servers, would also be legally obligated to enforce the ban.

None of the companies responded to requests for comment on Saturday.

Offers for TikTok

A last-minute proposal made on Saturday by the highly valued start-up Perplexity AI offered a merger with the US subsidiary of TikTok, a source with knowledge of the deal told AFP.

That deal could allow parent company ByteDance a possible solution without selling off the app entirely.

The plan, first reported by US broadcaster CNBC, would create a new joint venture combining the assets of US TikTok and Perplexity AI, which has been backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

The proposal did not include a price for the transaction, but the source estimated it would be at least US$50 billion.

Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has also made an offer to purchase TikTok’s US activity and said he’s “ready to work with the company and … Trump to complete a deal”.

Canadian investor Kevin O’Leary, who is involved in that offer, told Fox News ByteDance was offered US$20b for TikTok’s US operation.

He acknowledged the legal uncertainty over the case, with it remaining an open question whether an executive order by Trump to halt the ban would override the law.

“Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof,” warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.

Sarah Kreps, a professor of government and law at Cornell University, said “if an executive order conflicts with an existing law, the law takes precedence, and the order can be struck down by the courts”.

With TikTok forced into a shutdown, its US-based rivals Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts could reap benefits.

Thousands of worried TikTok users have protectively turned to Xiaohongshu (“Little Red Book”), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram.

Nicknamed “RedNote” by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store this week.

– Agence France-Presse