After weeks of uncertainty, Apple and Google has restored TikTok on its US app stores Thursday evening, according to NBC news. The restoration came it effect following a directive from US Attorney General Pam Bondi, Bloomberg reported.
The move follows a January executive order signed by former President Donald Trump, which delayed the enforcement of a TikTok ban by 75 days, pushing the deadline beyond the initial January 19 shutdown date. However, despite the delay, TikTok remained missing from both Apple and Google app stores in the US, leaving millions of users in limbo.
The ban came into effect from a law signed by former President Joe Biden in April, requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok to a non-Chinese entity or face a US ban by January 19.
After multiple legal challenges, the Supreme Court upheld the law on January 17, effectively clearing the way for TikTok’s shutdown in the country. In the final days of Biden’s presidency, his administration announced that enforcement of the law would be left to the incoming Trump administration, which was set to take office on January 20.