This weekend was quite the roller-coaster ride for TikTok. While some headlines report that TikTok is back and imply that the matter is resolved, that’s not entirely the case.
The app was removed from Apple’s App Store, as well as the app stores run by Google, Amazon, and Microsoft. None of those companies have restored it …
A timeline of the weekend’s events
On Friday, the US Supreme Court upheld the law imposing a ban on TikTok in the US. That meant the ban would take effect on January 19.
The Biden administration issued a statement saying that it didn’t intend to try to enforce the law in its last 24 hours in the White House, and it would therefore be a matter for Trump to decide.
Trump initially said he needed time to consider the matter, and TikTok went offline in the US on Sunday. On attempting to open the app, a message said that Trump was expected to resolve the issue when he took office.
Sorry, TikTok isn’t available right now. A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now. We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!
Apple issued a statement saying it was obliged to follow the law by removing the app from the App Store.
Later on Sunday, Trump made a social media post saying that he would suspend the ban as soon as he took office the next day, and that there would be no liability for ignoring the law in the meantime.
I’m asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark! I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security. The order will also confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order. Americans deserve to see our exciting Inauguration on Monday, as well as other events and conversations.
Access to the app was restored by Bytedance, as US host Oracle apparently decided it could trust Trump’s promise on liability.
In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service. We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans.
Apple and Google taking no chances
However, neither Apple nor Google restored the app to their app stores. The reason was highlighted by two senators in a brief statement: Trump is not yet in office, and the ban currently remains in force.
We commend Amazon, Apple, Google, and Microsoft for following the law and halting operations with ByteDance and TikTok, and we encourage other companies to do the same. The law, after all, risks ruinous bankruptcy for any company who violates it.
When they say ‘ruinous,’ they kind of mean it. The law allows for app stores to be fined $5,000 per user, which could total $850B. Even for a company of Apple’s size, that would be a truly massive blow.
Several legal scholars cited on Daring Fireball have indicated that it’s not even clear Trump has the power to shield companies from legal liability.
These “service providers” (aka Oracle and its content delivery network partner) have lost their minds. There’s no assurance that Trump, who’s not even the president yet, can provide. I look forward to the shareholder suits — Oracle is rapidly accruing tens if not hundreds of billions of dollars of liability.
9to5Mac’s Take
Apple made the right decision.
Maybe Trump has the legal power to provide immunity from liability on an action taken when he was not even in office; maybe he doesn’t. Maybe his word can be trusted; maybe it can’t. None of the app store providers are willing to take the chance, and that’s absolutely the right decision.
Apple doesn’t even really risk annoying its customers. Everyone knew this was coming, so anyone who wanted the app and didn’t already have it would already have downloaded it onto their devices.
Perhaps Apple does risk upsetting Trump, but CEO Tim Cook’s million-dollar donation and attendance at the inauguration probably mitigate this risk. The iPhone maker can certainly afford to wait to see how this plays out over the next couple of days.
Image: 9to5Mac
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