TikTok confirmed that it plans to go dark Sunday unless it’s given more clarity from the Biden administration and the Department of Justice regarding the ban that’s scheduled to go into effect that day.
“The statements issued today by both the Biden White House and the Department of Justice have failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurance to the service providers that are integral to maintaining TikTok’s availability to over 170 million Americans,” the company said Friday evening in a post on X.
“Unless the Biden Administration immediately provides a definitive statement to satisfy the most critical service providers assuring non-enforcement, unfortunately TikTok will be forced to go dark on January 19,” the statement continued.
President Joe Biden signed a law in April that required TikTok to divest from its Chinese ownership and sell to a U.S. company or face a shutdown.
Congress had passed the legislation last year with strong bipartisan support, with many who voted in favor of the law saying they had concerns regarding data and national security because of China’s involvement with the app. TikTok is owned by ByteDance, which is based in China.
This week, some U.S. lawmakers have suggested they want to delay the ban to allow the app to have more time to find a U.S. buyer.
The Supreme Court upheld the law in a ruling that came Friday, saying, “TikTok’s scale and susceptibility to foreign adversary control, together with the vast swaths of sensitive data the platform collects, justify differential treatment to address the government’s national security concerns.”
NBC News had previously reported that the app has been preparing to “go dark” as a last resort.
The outgoing Biden administration said Friday that it was leaving enforcement of the TikTok ban in the hands of the Trump administration.
On Friday, TikTok CEO Shou Chew thanked President-elect Donald Trump for supporting the company’s efforts to remain available to U.S. users.
During his first presidency, Trump unsuccessfully tried to ban TikTok. He has since changed his tune, using the app during his 2024 candidacy to reach younger audiences.
Chew was invited by the president-elect’s team to his inauguration on Monday and is expected to attend and sit with other tech executives.
In a post on Truth Social on Friday, Trump wrote, “The Supreme Court decision was expected, and everyone must respect it. My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I must have time to review the situation. Stay tuned!”
Savannah Sellers, Ben Goggin and Kat Tenbarge contributed.
