If you are using Apple devices including iPhone and have deleted the TikTok app, you will not be able to re-download it, and if you want to download the app and search for it in the App Store, you will not find it.
This is what some people in Morocco have been experiencing in recent hours, amid rumors about the closure or ban of the app in the kingdom.
What is the truth?
It seems that the disappearance of the Chinese app is not limited to Morocco but extends to several countries, and the reason is the United States, after the decision to ban the platform came into effect on January 19, pushing ByteDance to sell the app to American institutions.
Companies like Apple and Google are subject to huge fines if they do not remove the Chinese app from their platforms like the App Store and Play Store. Based on that, Apple has proceeded to remove it.
Interestingly, the decision was supposed to be implemented only within the United States, but it has now begun to affect several countries, including Morocco.
In a comment on the matter, Apple stated that it has removed TikTok and other ByteDance apps like CapCut and Hypic, in compliance with the law that requires it.
What will happen? American TikTok
Most likely, the app will be replaced by an American version, as the company announced the signing of agreements with major investors including Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX to form a new joint venture called “American TikTok.”
The new version will operate under “specific guarantees that protect national security through comprehensive data protection, algorithm security, content oversight, and software guarantees for American users,” as stated by the company in a statement on Thursday. American TikTok users can continue to use the same app.
President Donald Trump praised the deal in a post on Truth Social, specifically thanking Chinese President Xi Jinping “for working with us and ultimately agreeing to the deal.” Trump added that he hopes “those who use TikTok and love it will remember me in the long term in the future.”
Adam Brieser, who previously served as the head of operations and trust and safety at TikTok, will take on the role of CEO of the new venture. He will work alongside a board of directors consisting of seven members, most of whom are American, including the current CEO of TikTok, Shou Chew.
The deal represents the end of years of uncertainty regarding the fate of the popular video-sharing platform in the United States.
