TikTok Ban Now Puts Apple, Google Under Spotlight

TikTok, the second-most downloaded app in the United States in 2024, on Feb. 13 said that its most recent version was now accessible for download, even as Apple and Google moved to restore the popular short video app to their respective app stores.

In accordance with a 2024 law, Apple and Google had banned TikTok in the U.S. last month. The app, which is enjoyed by almost half of the U.S. population, went off the app chart for a brief period before a legislation went into force requiring its Chinese owner, ByteDance, to either sell TikTok in the name of US national security or risk being banned.

The restoration of TikTok on app stores by Apple and Google came after assurances from U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi that a TikTok ban wouldn’t be implemented right away. 

Reportedly, U.S. President Donald Trump had given the attorney general instructions in an executive order dated Jan. 20 to “not to take any action to enforce the act for a period of 75 days from today to allow my administration an opportunity to determine the appropriate course forward,” effectively postponing the ban’s implementation for 75 days and permitting TikTok to temporarily continue operations.

Despite TikTok’s resumption of operations, the app was nonetheless kept unavailable from the U.S. app stores by Google and Apple. According to experts, the companies may have been looking for guarantees that they would not face legal action for hosting or distributing the app.

However, according to Trump’s decree, businesses that operate digital marketplaces or app stores won't be penalised for maintaining the TikTok app. He has also hinted at the possibility of extending the 75-day deadline.

Trump had earlier said that he would like a “bidding war” over the sale of TikTok. He is reportedly in discussions with several interested parties regarding the social media platform’s future and would probably make a decision in February.

A number of prospective buyers, including former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, have shown interest in the platform. The U.S. president had even claimed that Microsoft is in talks to acquire the U.S. arm of TikTok, without offering details. Trump has also reportedly begun the process of creating a sovereign wealth fund for the U.S., hinting that the fund may eventually purchase TikTok.

TikTok’s parent firm, ByteDance, is looking to sell the app for $200 billion.