Updated, January 19, 2025, 2:06 PM ET: After shutting down its app and deleting it from various app stores about 12 hours ago, TikTok is now in the process of restoring services in the United States. This story examines the most recent changes in this evolving situation; Below is the original text of this report.
It wasn’t clear in the lead-up to the TikTok ban what the fate of parent company ByteDance’s other apps would be, but now we know: those apps are gone in the US, too. Meanwhile, TikTok stopped working this weekend, as did other apps developed by or affiliated with ByteDance, including popular video editing tool CapCut, social media platform Lemon8 and Marvel Snap. All are now showing messages to US users that their services are unavailable. Ben BroadChief Development Officer for Marvel Snap Developer Second Dinner wrote on Threads that getting banned “came as a surprise to us” and that the team is working to get it back online.
The Second Supper echoed this X In his in-app message to users, he adds: “MARVEL SNAP is not going anywhere.” while Marvel Snap Created by a US-based developer, its publisher Nuverse Games is a subsidiary of ByteDance. Other Nuverse games appear to have been affected as well.
CapCut and Lemon8 may be less surprising victims, as they were both developed by ByteDance, but given the law’s focus on TikTok alone as its target, their closure is sure to come as a shock to many users. CapCut is widely used for video editing, especially among social media creators. Many TikTok users looking for an alternative in light of the ban flocked to Lemon8; Just a few days ago, Lemon8 was The second most popular application On the App Store.
On a new support page listing some of the affected apps, Apple notes that “If you already have these apps installed on your device, they stay on your device. But they can’t be redownloaded if they’re deleted or restored if you move to a new device. In-app purchases and subscriptions are no longer New ones are possible. These apps will also not receive updates.
Along with TikTok, CapCut, Lemon8, Marvel SnapApple named Lark, Hypic — an AI-powered photo editing tool — and Gauth: AI Study Companion as apps that were pulled as a result of the ban. But there are many other things not listed that may be swept up in it as well.
“Apple is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions in which it operates,” Apple said in a statement on its support page. “Under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, apps developed by ByteDance Ltd. and its affiliates – including TikTok, CapCut, Lemon8 and others – are available for download or updates on the App Store for users in the US starting January 19, 2025.
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