TikTok returns to Apple, Google app stores
The Chinese-owned social media app had been removed from the the two stores on Jan. 18, moments after TikTok's leadership temporarily halted service in the U.S. in response to a national security law that went into effect the next day.
Nearly a month later, TikTok is once again available for download in the Apple App Store and Google Play.
Internet service providers like Apple, Google and Oracle could have incurred harsh penalties for violating the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act. That law, which former President Joe Biden signed in April required China-based ByteDance to divest its TikTok U.S. operations by Jan. 19 or face an effective ban of the app in the country.
TikTok has argued that the law violates the First Amendment rights of its over 170 million U.S. users, while the U.S. government made the case that ByteDance's ownership and its alleged ties to the People's Republic of China make the app a national security risk. The Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration in January, and, in an opinion, said, "Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok's data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary."
TikTok pushed back on the Supreme Court's decision, and followed through with its threat to shut down its U.S. operations unless the Biden administration intervened.