Apple Support: ‘About Availability of TikTok and ByteDance Ltd. Apps in the United States’
Apple Support document, which is linked from the App Store if you search for any of the apps from ByteDance: Apple is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates. Pursuant to the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, apps developed by ByteDance Ltd. and its subsidiaries — including TikTok, CapCut, Lemon8, and others — will no longer be available for download or updates on the App Store for users in the United States starting January 19, 2025. [...] If you already have these apps installed on your device, they will remain on your device. But they can’t be redownloaded if deleted or restored if you move to a new device. In-app purchases and new subscriptions are no longer possible. Users in the United States won’t receive updates for these apps, which could potentially impact performance, security, and compatibility with future versions of iOS and iPadOS, and some app functions might become limited or stop working since the app can’t receive updates. My take from Sunday on Trump’s reprieve-by-executive-fiat seems correct: it has no bearing on the law. Really, all his executive order does is instruct the Justice Department (or as he would call it, his Justice Department) not to enforce the law for 75 days, and to promise any company that violates the PAFACA law that they won’t be prosecuted for it. There’s really no question about it: Oracle and Akamai are violating the law by providing services to TikTok users in the United States. They’re simply taking Trump at his word that the law will not be enforced and they will not face penalties for violating it during Trump’s completely arbitrary 75-day grace period. That’s not like a pardon. Trump’s executive order yesterday carries no more legal weight than a Monopoly “Get Out of Jail Free” card. I don’t think it will happen but there’s nothing that would stop the Trump Justice Department from changing its mind and prosecuting Oracle and Akamai for these violations. It’s up to Trump. There’s also nothing that would stop a future Justice Department under a post-Trump administration from holding them accountable for this. Apple and Google are both sticking with the actual law. ★
Apple Support document, which is linked from the App Store if you search for any of the apps from ByteDance:
Apple is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates. Pursuant to the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, apps developed by ByteDance Ltd. and its subsidiaries — including TikTok, CapCut, Lemon8, and others — will no longer be available for download or updates on the App Store for users in the United States starting January 19, 2025. [...]
If you already have these apps installed on your device, they will remain on your device. But they can’t be redownloaded if deleted or restored if you move to a new device. In-app purchases and new subscriptions are no longer possible.
Users in the United States won’t receive updates for these apps, which could potentially impact performance, security, and compatibility with future versions of iOS and iPadOS, and some app functions might become limited or stop working since the app can’t receive updates.
My take from Sunday on Trump’s reprieve-by-executive-fiat seems correct: it has no bearing on the law. Really, all his executive order does is instruct the Justice Department (or as he would call it, his Justice Department) not to enforce the law for 75 days, and to promise any company that violates the PAFACA law that they won’t be prosecuted for it. There’s really no question about it: Oracle and Akamai are violating the law by providing services to TikTok users in the United States. They’re simply taking Trump at his word that the law will not be enforced and they will not face penalties for violating it during Trump’s completely arbitrary 75-day grace period.
That’s not like a pardon. Trump’s executive order yesterday carries no more legal weight than a Monopoly “Get Out of Jail Free” card. I don’t think it will happen but there’s nothing that would stop the Trump Justice Department from changing its mind and prosecuting Oracle and Akamai for these violations. It’s up to Trump. There’s also nothing that would stop a future Justice Department under a post-Trump administration from holding them accountable for this.
Apple and Google are both sticking with the actual law.
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