TikTok is no longer available in the United States, at least for now. But this isn't the only ByteDance-owned app currently blocked for US-based users.
Just before the federal government's Jan. 19 deadline, TikTok cut off access to anyone trying to access the app from the United States. “A law has been enacted in the United States that bans TikTok. Unfortunately, this means that you cannot use the TikTok app at this time,” it wrote, noting that users in the United States will face a block screen when they try to load the app. It's dark. President Trump has said that once he takes office, he will work with us on a solution to bring back TikTok. Please stay tuned! ”
Similar notifications have appeared on other apps owned by TikTok's parent company, ByteDance. ByteDance is a central figure in the controversy over the popular video app, which is based in China and had 170 million users in the United States, at least until Saturday. CapCut, a video editing app, and Lemon8, a photo and video sharing app, have all gone dark in the US.
A federal law passed last year prohibits ByteDance-owned apps from operating in the United States, citing national security concerns. In response to a Chinese law that requires China-based companies to provide data to the Chinese government and intelligence agencies, the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Control Applications Act (PAFACA) requires ByteDance to use TikTok and its Required other apps to be sold to entities not based in China. By Sunday.
That sale never happened. As a result, TikTok began blocking US-based users on Saturday, January 18th, ahead of a midnight deadline. PAFACA bans not only TikTok but all apps operated by ByteDance, so users of the company's myriad other apps face similar restrictions.
PAFACA does not require ByteDance to block the app for US-based users. Instead, it prohibits U.S. companies from providing services to “distribute, maintain, or update” ByteDance-owned apps. As a result, many of these apps are no longer available in Apple or Google's app stores. But that could change as soon as Donald Trump takes office on Monday, with the U.S. president-elect saying he plans to extend the deadline to sell TikTok by 90 days. Yes, everything is very confusing.
At this time, below is a summary of all the apps that are no longer accessible to US users due to the US ban on ByteDance-owned apps.
TikTok, TikTok Studio, TikTok Shop Seller, TikTok Lite
Not only TikTok, but other ByteDance-owned apps that work in the TikTok ecosystem are also no longer available, along with the main app. These include TikTok Studio (for creators to manage content and check analytics), TikTok Shop Seller (for e-commerce sellers on the app to manage business operations), and TikTok Lite (available only in certain apps). (a smaller, faster version of the original app). country).
cap cut
CapCut is a free video editing tool optimized for vertical videos that can be posted to TikTok. It's an app often chosen by amateur creators because of its professional features. Some creators first use CapCut to create their videos before uploading them to platforms other than TikTok.
lemon 8
ByteDance released Lemon8 as a photo-based social media app in February 2023. Known for its similarities to RedNote, a particularly successful social media app in China, it became the destination for many TikTok users in exile this week. Some TikTok users chose to migrate to Lemon8, but the app also went offline.
Gaut
Gauth allows students to take photos of their homework, and the app uses artificial intelligence to understand the problem and provide step-by-step solutions. It also includes other features to increase student learning productivity. The app's closure announcement this weekend said it had “helped 300 million users with billions of questions.”
delusions of grandeur
Launched in 2022, Hypic is a photo editing tool with a focus on generative AI tools. It uses AI to help users improve the quality of their photos or turn them into comics.
lark
Lark is a workspace communication app similar to Slack. Originally created for internal messages between ByteDance's own employees, it is now one of the most used office communication apps in China, with millions of active users. .
Meloro, Fizzo, Mytopia Books
Polygon, a subsidiary of Singapore-based ByteDance, has several apps that allow users to watch short vertical dramas (Melolo) and read online fiction novels (Fizzo and MyTopia Books). MyTopia Books is the only one of these apps that hasn't ended support for US-based users and remains available in some form on Apple's US App Store.
Tokopedia
Tokopedia is one of the largest e-commerce platforms in Indonesia. It was acquired by ByteDance in December 2023 and integrated with TikTok Shop operations in the country after the Indonesian government banned the latter's app, citing the “need to protect the data of small sellers and users”. .
It is no longer available in Apple's US App Store, but remains available in Google's US Play Store at the time of publication.
