TikTok is back in the Apple and Google app stores in the US, seemingly following another intervention from US President Donald Trump.
That move came as Trump himself indicated to reporters that he might further postpone the deadline for TikTok’s China-based owner ByteDance to sell the app in order to avoid a ban in the US, which is currently 5 Apr. Though, he added, he doesn’t think a further postponement will be necessary.
US Congress originally set the deadline for ByteDance to sell TikTok as 19 Jan, an order justified by concerns that the Chinese government has access to TikTok user data via its China-based owner. Under a sell-or-be-banned law passed by Congress, if TikTok didn’t meet that deadline the app would be banned.
Trump took over as US President the day after the deadline and immediately issued an executive order stating that the ban would not be enforced for another 75 days.
ByteDance, which denies there are any data security issues, has always insisted that it won’t sell TikTok. Even if it changed its position, any transaction would need to be approved by the Chinese government, which everyone assumes would be reluctant to sign-off on a sale to an American company.
Nevertheless, Trump says he’s confident that he can negotiate some kind of deal that placates both ByteDance and the Chinese government, while also addressing the data security concerns that have been expressed by both Republicans and Democrats in Congress.
But can that really be done by 5 Apr? Or can we expect TikTok to go offline in the US on that day, as it did for about twelve hours on 19 Jan before Trump confirmed his plan to extend the deadline? For those creators and musicians that use TikTok as a vital fan engagement tool, the ongoing uncertainty about the app’s future in the US is somewhat annoying, to say the least.
According to Reuters, when asked if American TikTok users should prepare for the app to go offline again in early April, and for longer this time, Trump told reporters, “Well, I have 90 days from about two weeks ago” to sort this out, and “I’m sure it can be extended. But let’s see. I don’t think you'll need to”.
It’s not clear what the “90 days from about two weeks ago” refers to. The act passed by Congress which instigated the sell-or-be-banned law did say that the President could extend the deadline for a sale by 90 days.
However, it seems likely Congress meant 90 days from 19 Jan, which is “about four weeks ago”, and Trump’s own executive order opted for a 75 day delay. Trump’s remarks suggest he doesn’t actually know what deadline he’s set.
But still, maybe Trump can just keep issuing additional executive orders pushing things back another 75 days each time for his entire presidency. Or maybe he’ll actually have the promised ‘please everybody’ super deal in place by 5 Apr after all.
He remains bullish about pulling that off, telling journalists that he believes the Chinese government will in fact approve any deal because “I’m going to make it worthwhile for China to do - I think it would be to China's advantage to have the deal be made”.
Back on 19 Jan, when Congress’s ban went into effect, TikTok shut down its US operations, and Apple and Google removed the app from their respective app stores. TikTok resumed US operations the same day following a statement from Trump, but Apple and Google never returned the app to their stores.
The two tech giants stood firm on that even after the President issued his formal executive order declaring that no legal action would be taken against either TikTok, or any company involved in the operations or distribution of TikTok, for at least 75 days. So much so, TikTok last week allowed Android users to directly download its app from its website, circumventing Google’s store.
But both Apple and Google have not restored TikTok to their app platforms. According to Bloomberg, that happened after both companies received bespoke assurances from the Trump government that there will be no legal liabilities for distributing the TikTok app while the 75 day postponement is in effect.
So, it’s business as usual for TikTok in the US, for now. We await to see what happens on 5 Apr. Or, maybe, in “90 days from about two weeks ago”.