Google and Apple Reinstate TikTok After US Assurances
In a significant turn of events, Google and Apple have reinstated TikTok to their app stores following assurances from the US Justice Department. This move comes after a series of legal battles and political manoeuvrings surrounding the popular social media platform.
The saga began in April 2025 when Congress passed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, giving ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, 270 days to sell the app or face a US ban. President Trump extended this deadline twice, first to April 5, 2025, and then to June 19, 2025.
ByteDance and TikTok challenged the law in federal court, with a group of TikTok creators also filing a lawsuit alleging constitutional violations. Meanwhile, Oracle and a group of US investors were in talks to take over TikTok's global operations and buy a majority stake under a White House-brokered deal.
The Supreme Court agreed to take up and expedite the case, with oral arguments held in January 2025. On January 17, 2025, the Court upheld the constitutionality of the law, leaving TikTok with few options. However, President Trump issued an executive order on January 20, 2025, instructing the Attorney General not to enforce the law for 75 days and giving assurances to service providers.
Following these developments, the U.S. federal government, under President Joe Biden, approved the implementation of the law on January 19, 2023, after a later constitutional ruling by the Supreme Court in January 2025. With the law upheld and the deadline extended, TikTok's future in the US remains uncertain, but for now, users can access the app through Google and Apple's app stores.
