The clock is ticking on TikTok intended US ban, and a fresh report claims the social media giant intends to take down the app immediately for its 170 million US users on Sunday, January 19, unless the Supreme Court intervenes to halt the prohibition.
- TikTok could shut its app for US users on Sunday, January 19
- New report suggests TikTok app will show a pop-up ban message
- This would be more drastic and immediate than previously thought
According to Reuters, TikTok intends to go beyond the activities required by law. The prohibition would only effect new TikTok downloads on iOS and Android, allowing fans to continue to utilize current installs. However, it appears that TikTok may go much further and totally shut down its app in the United States starting Sunday.
How would it do this? According to Reuters sources, anyone attempting to open the app in the United States “will see a pop-up message directing them to a website with information about the ban”. Presumably, this will prevent US supporters from using the app immediately, implying that the restriction may have a greater impact than previously imagined.
While the decision may appear weird in theory, there is a possible rationale – as Reuters explains, “if the ban is reversed later, TikTok would be able to restore service for U.S. users in a relatively short time.”
So, how should you prepare for the upcoming TikTok ban? Here’s all you need to know in one convenient location.
Is TikTok really getting banned in the US?
Yes. At the time of writing, TikTok will be outlawed in the United States on January 19 unless the Supreme Court rules it unlawful.
If this does not occur, new users will be unable to install the app in the United States, and existing users will be unable to update the software through their phone’s app store. There are also claims that US users would get a pop-up notice in the app starting January 19, effectively blocking them from watching videos and directing them to additional information about the ban.
This means you won’t be able to access any material in the app, even if you still have it loaded, unless you use a service like one of the best VPNs to change your location to somewhere outside of the United States.
Will the TikTok ban get delayed?
We are still waiting for the US Supreme Court to rule on whether the TikTok ban should be delayed or allowed to go into force on January 19; that judgment might come at any time.
The restriction takes effect one day before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration. Back in December, Trump asked the US Supreme Court to postpone the TikTok ban while he worked on a “political resolution.”
Trump would not be able to overturn the legislation, but neither could the Department of Justice enforce it. Senator Edward Markey recently stated that he intends to present legislation to prolong the TikTok ban deadline.
As things stand, the TikTok ban will not be delayed unless the US Supreme Court reverses its decision. Even if the Supreme Court does not halt the ban, Trump might potentially reverse it later, which is what TikTok’s owner, ByteDance, is currently betting on.
How will the TikTok ban affect you?
If recent rumors are correct, the TikTok ban may be more rapid and severe than we previously anticipated. Initially, it appeared that a US ban would just involve the Apple App Store and Google Play Store barring downloads in the region, allowing existing users to continue using it for some time.
According to Reuters, TikTok intends to shut down the app for all US users on Sunday, January 19, if the ban is enforced. It will allegedly accomplish this through a pop-up notification within the app.
According to the article, the app’s owner, ByteDance, intends to provide you with the “option to download all of their data so that they can take a record of their personal information.”
With TikTok no longer available on app stores, the software would be unable to receive updates, resulting in more bugs and security flaws that hackers may exploit.
In theory, you could use one of the best VPNs to get around the TikTok restriction, but this is far from infallible – and you might still get a screen indicating the app isn’t available in your country.
This is why many TikTok users have been exploring for alternatives, such as RedNote, which is, strangely, another Chinese software.
What are the alternatives to TikTok?
With the TikTok ban coming, many #TikTokRefugees are looking for alternatives, even though nothing can quite replace it.
RedNote and Lemon8 are rapidly climbing the App Store ranks. The difficulty with the latter is that it is also owned by ByteDance, thus it could be included in the ban discussion.
We tested RedNote, and while it functions similarly to TikTok, we determined that “there’s nothing remotely American about this app or the company running it, Xingi.”
The app could be a temporary lifeline, but the real winners of this debacle could be Instagram and YouTube, whose Reels and Shorts features were designed to compete with TikTok.
Are Elon Musk or Mr Beast going to buy TikTok?
Bloomberg reported a few days ago that ByteDance was considering selling TikTok to Elon Musk, but the TikTok owner appears to have dismissed this as “pure fiction”.
Naturally, some more eccentric potential suitors have thrown their hats in the ring. Mr Beast, a YouTuber, quipped, “Okay fine, I’ll buy Tik Tok [sic] so it doesn’t get banned,” then added, “Unironically, I’ve had so many billionaires reach out to me since I tweeted this, let’s see if we can pull this off.”
Okay fine, I’ll buy Tik Tok so it doesn’t get banned
— MrBeast (@MrBeast) January 14, 2025
While Mr Beast has over 100 million TikTok followers, this appears to be one to file alongside the Elon Musk stories as “highly unlikely.”
However, it’s difficult to foresee how the app ban crisis will unfold in the next days.
