In a surprise move, US President Donald Trump has ordered a 75-day pause on enforcing a law that would effectively ban TikTok in the US.
Persecondnews reports that the executive order delays the implementation of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, which took effect on January 19.
Trump had promised to move quickly to save TikTok from the law, which was passed overwhelmingly by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden in 2024.
Speaking to reporters from the White House, Trump said he was seeking a 50-50 partnership between “the United States” and TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance.
“I guess I have a warm spot for TikTok that I didn’t have originally,” Trump said, crediting the app for delivering him the youth vote in his election.
Trump’s plan to set up a joint venture between US companies and ByteDance could potentially value the company at a trillion dollars, thanks to his intervention.
The 75-day pause is intended to give the new administration time to “pursue a resolution that protects national security while saving a platform used by 170 million Americans,” according to the order.
The delay also provides clarification for companies like Apple and Google, which would otherwise be required to remove TikTok from their app stores and block updates, facing penalties of up to $5,000 per user if the app is accessed.
TikTok had shut down in the US late Saturday as the deadline approached, leaving millions of users dismayed.
However, the app restored service on Sunday, crediting Trump for making the reversal possible.
As Trump noted, “Essentially, with TikTok, I have the right to either sell it or close it.”
The president’s move has sparked hopes that a resolution can be reached to protect national security while saving the popular social media platform.
Persecondnews recalls that TikTok had said it will be forced to “go dark” in the US on Sunday, January 19 unless the government intervenes before a ban takes effect.
In a statement late on Friday, it said the White House and the Department of Justice had “failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurance to the service providers that are integral to maintaining TikTok’s availability”.
It said that unless the government immediately stepped in to assure the video app it would not be punished for violating the looming ban, it would be “forced to go dark on January 19”.
The statement follows a Supreme Court ruling earlier on Friday which upheld a law banning the app in the US unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, sells the platform by Sunday.
Passed in April 2024, the law says ByteDance must sell the US version of the platform to a neutral party to avert an outright ban.
TikTok challenged the law, arguing it violates free speech protections for its 170 million users in the country.
But the Supreme Court’s ruling means the US version of the app will be removed from app stores and web hosting services unless a buyer is found in the coming days.
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