After President Donald Trump lifted the TikTok ban that took place in January, postponing its enforcement until April 5, 2025, it is now available on Apple’s App Store and Android’s Google Play.
TikTok is used by over 170 million US users, so the ban left a huge impact on the country. However, its future in the US is still vague.
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Trump’s executive order changed things
After the ban, Trump signed an executive order allowing TikTok 75 days to comply with a law banning the app if it is not sold, extending the time before the ban.
The app’s return to the app stores came after receiving reassurance from the Trump administration that they wouldn’t be held liable for allowing downloads.
It was Former President Joe Biden who allowed the ban
The ban passed with a bipartisan vote in Congress during Biden’s rule. The aim was to pressure TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, to sell the social media platform’s US version to a neutral third party to avoid an outright ban.
Why the ban took place
The Biden administration believed that the platform could be used by China for spying and political manipulation.
China and TikTok have insistently denied these accusations, and Beijing has not accepted calls for a sale of TikTok’s US operations.
Trump had a change of heart
The Supreme Court eventually upheld the law banning the app, and Trump was in favor of banning the app during his first term.
However, the president had a change of heart in his second term as the platform garnered him billions of views during his presidential campaign.
There was explicit gratitude to Trump
At first, there was a popup message apologizing to TikTok’s users due to the ban, but a few hours later, another popup message showed up welcoming people back to the platform, thanking Trump by name for bringing TikTok back.
TikTok chief executive supported Trump
TikTok chief executive Shou Chew encountered the president in Mar-a-Lago after winning the elections in November and attended his inauguration ceremony as well.
Trump wanted to find a compromise with the Chinese platform so operations could roll peacefully on both sides.
Trump floated the idea of TikTok being jointly owned
According to BBC, Trump talked about the matter in a news conference about artificial intelligence, saying: “What I’m thinking of saying to someone is buy it and give half to the US, half, and we’ll give you a permit.”
The potential buyers of TikTok
Many names have been linked to potentially buying TikTok. Trump is open to selling it to Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and the leader of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk.
Other names linked to buying TikTok
Other names showed interest in buying the social media platform, including billionaire Frank McCourt and Canadian businessman Kevin O’Leary.
There is also YouTube’s biggest name, Jimmy Donaldson – AKA MrBeast – who had investors contacting him after expressing his interest.
Last Updated on February 16, 2025 by Nour Morsy
