“Sorry, TikTok isn’t accessible proper now,” the message learn.
Hours earlier than a federal legislation banning TikTok from the United States was set to take impact on Sunday, the Chinese-owned social media app went darkish, and U.S. customers might now not entry movies on the platform. Instead, the app greeted them with a message that mentioned “a legislation banning TikTok has been enacted.”
“We are lucky that President Trump has indicated that he’ll work with us on an answer,” the message mentioned. “Please keep tuned!”
TikTok additionally appeared to have been faraway from Apple and Google’s U.S. app shops, some customers mentioned. TikTok’s sister app, Lemon8, additionally stopped working and confirmed U.S. customers a message saying that it “isn’t accessible proper now.” Both TikTok and Lemon8 are owned by ByteDance, a Chinese web big.
TikTok grew to become unavailable after the Supreme Court determination on Friday upholding the legislation, which requires ByteDance to promote the app by Sunday or in any other case face a ban. The legislation was handed overwhelmingly by Congress final 12 months and signed by President Biden. TikTok, which has confronted nationwide safety considerations for its Chinese ties, had believed it might win its authorized problem to the legislation, however failed.
The blackout capped a chaotic stretch for TikTok, which had made last-minute pleas to each the Biden administration and President-elect Donald J. Trump for a manner out of the legislation. Until Saturday evening, nobody — together with the U.S. authorities — was fully positive what would occur to it when the legislation took impact. The United States has by no means blocked an app utilized by tens of tens of millions of Americans basically in a single day.
The legislation has a provision to penalize app retailer operators like Apple and Google and web internet hosting corporations like Oracle for distributing or sustaining the TikTok app. Under the legislation, these corporations face penalties as excessive as $5,000 per consumer who can entry the app.
Google, Apple and Oracle didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.
For TikTok and ByteDance, the developments are a significant blow. TikTok has roughly 170 million U.S. customers, who’re among the app’s most profitable prospects. In authorized filings, TikTok has mentioned that even a short lived disappearance might kneecap it, with customers and creators leaving for different platforms and by no means returning even when a ban was lifted.
The state of affairs was additional sophisticated by the legislation’s begin date falling within the last days of Mr. Biden’s presidency. A White House spokeswoman recommended on Saturday that the Biden administration wouldn’t begin fining corporations on Sunday.
“We see no cause for TikTok or different corporations to take actions within the subsequent few days earlier than the Trump administration takes workplace on Monday,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, mentioned in a press release. “We have laid out our place clearly and straightforwardly: actions to implement this legislation will fall to the subsequent administration.”
Mr. Trump mentioned on Saturday he would “almost definitely” discover a solution to give TikTok a 90-day extension as soon as he takes workplace on Monday. The legislation provides the president the flexibility to increase the deadline for a sale provided that there’s “important progress” towards a deal that will put TikTok within the palms of a non-Chinese proprietor. It was not clear how that extension may work if the ban had already taken impact.
Mr. Trump has additionally indicated he might signal an government order to bypass the ban of the app.
On Saturday, the temper on TikTok was somber. Alix Earle, a content material creator with 7.2 million followers who rose to fame on the app in 2022, posted tearful movies mourning the platform.
“I really feel like I’m going Through heartbreak,” Ms. Earle wrote in a single video. “This platform is greater than an app or a job to me. I’ve so many Memories on right here. I’ve posted each day for the previous 6 years of my life. I’ve shared my buddies, household, relationships, private struggles, secrets and techniques.”
Ms. Earle added that she had been “in denial” concerning the ban.
Other customers spent their last moments on the app recreating viral dances. The “For You” web page crammed with montages of customers’ favourite developments and songs, many courting again to the early days of the pandemic, when the app soared in recognition.
By 9 p.m. Eastern on Saturday evening, TikTok was displaying U.S. customers a pop up message that mentioned the app would quickly cease working.
It mentioned the legislation would “pressure us to make our providers quickly unavailable.”
Late Saturday night, Ms. Earle stay streamed by way of Instagram. “I used to be simply not anticipating that for this Saturday evening,” she mentioned of TikTok’s sudden shutdown. She mentioned RedNote, a Chinese video app that has change into standard in current days, wouldn’t change into a long-term substitute.
“We’re simply gonna should make it somewhat extra enjoyable on right here, that’s what I’m pondering,” she mentioned of Instagram.
On Sunday morning in China, TikTok’s notification to U.S. customers that it might droop service was a trending subject on Weibo, a preferred social media platform just like X.
“This is a darkish second within the improvement of the web,” Hu Xijin, a former editor in chief of the state-run Global Times, wrote on Weibo. The United States had set an instance for “the complete Western world” to silence voices on-line within the identify of nationwide safety, he wrote.
Diao Daming, a professor of worldwide relations at Renmin University of China, known as TikTok “the primary massive take a look at that Trump 2.0 has to face.” Mr. Trump’s actions on TikTok might take a look at his relationship with “China hawks” in Washington, Mr. Diao wrote in a commentary printed on state media.
Claire Fu contributed reporting from Seoul.