Nearly 11 years.
1.9m users worldwide.
23m videos uploaded daily.
TikTok has become an everyday use for many Americans, with 63% of teens saying they use the app. However, in April 2024, former U.S. President Joe Biden signed a bill that would force TikTok to separate from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, or face a ban in the United States.
On Jan. 10, the Supreme Court heard the case, and decided to uphold the ban, confirming that TikTok would indeed shut down for American users on Jan. 19, 2025.
Hours before it was meant to be shut down, on Jan. 18, TikTok went dark for American users however the shutdown was short. Just a few hours later many teens reported having TikTok back. The following morning, TikTok was back online in the United States. However, many students deleted their app and can’t get it back.
Many people deleted the app off of their phones in favor of alternative apps such as Instagram reels or RedNote. Most thought TikTok would be gone forever, and now they are unable to get the app back.
“It won’t let me download it back onto my phone, but I already switched to Instagram Reels as an alternative,” junior Aria Culp said.
Phones with the TikTok app installed on it are currently listed on eBay for much as $10,000, however, the only bid on one currently is for $500.
While many are upset that they are unable to download the app now that it works again, many are more upset that the bill was even signed in the first place.
TikTok was a large part of sophomore Kelbina Tamang’s life, and she thinks the government should be worrying about other things.
“I’ve had TikTok since it was Musical.ly, and I think it’s stupid that they’re even banning it,” Tamang said. “I think that they need to worry about the other things going on in the world right now.”
Other people are relatively unaffected by the disappearance and reappearance of TikTok.
“Really I couldn’t care less, because I have Instagram reels,” Culp said.
Many students also complained of verified Facebook and Meta accounts on TikTok immediately after it came back. Students found that TikTok was less tailored to them than it was before.
“All of the sudden it’s back and there are two verified Meta and Facebook accounts,” Tamang said. “And when I blocked both accounts, my For You page went back to the way it was before TikTok stopped working. I’m just not too happy about the whole situation.”
The U.S. government is still demanding TikTok be sold to a U.S. company. One specific concern students have with a sale is that TikTok would change too much.
“I think one reason TikTok is so popular is because of the layout and design and how simple it is. I’ve had TikTok since 2016 and I would hate to see it change too much,” Tamang said. “It hasn’t always looked the way it does now, but it’s always been the same kind of layout and it would suck to have to learn how to use what is basically a whole new app.”