TikTok shut down, then came back. What's next?

Tue Jan 21 2025

Summary

TechLinked Episode Summary: "TikTok Shut Down, Then Came Back. What's Next?" Release Date: January 21, 2025
Host: Linus Media Group

1. Introduction

The episode delves into the tumultuous events surrounding TikTok's legal battles in the United States, its temporary shutdown, and subsequent reinstatement. Hosted by Linus Media Group, the discussion provides a comprehensive overview of the implications for TikTok, its parent company ByteDance, and the broader tech landscape.

2. The TikTok Ban and Temporary Shutdown

Following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to uphold the TikTok ban law, TikTok promptly took its apps and services offline in the U.S. on Saturday night. Users encountered a popup message explaining the ban:

“A law banning TikTok means that you can't use it. It's very helpful. I'm sure some people needed that clearly laid out” (00:32).

However, this cessation was short-lived. By the next morning, TikTok had restored its services. This swift reversal was attributed to the newly inaugurated U.S. President Donald Trump, who assured TikTok that their service providers would not face punishment despite the Supreme Court's ruling.

3. Political and Legal Implications

Trump's intervention sparked confusion and debate within political circles. Although he promised leniency to TikTok, Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and two Republican senators had previously pledged to uphold the ban and pursue legal actions against the service providers. This inconsistency has created a "legal murkiness," contributing to TikTok's absence from major app stores like Google Play and Apple's App Store.

Apple has issued a support document clarifying their obligation to adhere to jurisdictional laws:

“Apple is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates” (00:32).

Despite TikTok being accessible online, it remains absent from app stores—a situation likely influenced by ongoing negotiations and the evolving political landscape.

4. Impact on ByteDance and Associated Apps

While TikTok faced hurdles, other ByteDance-owned applications have had varied fates:

Capcut: Unlike TikTok, the mobile editing app Capcut remains available and compatible with platforms like Instagram. Instagram even released a Capcut competitor named Edits over the weekend.
Marvel Snap: The Gacha-style game Marvel Snap remains offline, highlighting selective enforcement of the ban across ByteDance's portfolio.

This selective approach raises questions about the criteria and consistency applied in banning specific apps over others, with some users and analysts expressing confusion over the uneven impact.

5. TikTok's User Base and Popularity

An analyst cited by the Associated Press noted that TikTok’s abrupt shutdown “proved how unpopular the Ban was among its users,” contradicting initial expectations that TikTok users would support the ban. This unanticipated public resistance indicates that TikTok retains significant popularity despite regulatory challenges.

6. Future of TikTok in the U.S.

Trump has proposed that an American entity acquire a 50% stake in TikTok. Representatives from ByteDance and the Chinese government have indicated a willingness to discuss this proposal, suggesting potential pathways for TikTok's continued operation in the U.S. market.

In the interim, ByteDance continues to influence the social media landscape by promoting RedNote—a TikTok alternative funded by ByteDance—and introducing new "Doom Scrolly" video feeds on platforms like Blue Sky and Twitter. However, the necessity and longevity of these alternatives remain uncertain.

7. Tech Industry Reactions

The episode also touches on the unusual presence of major tech CEOs at Trump’s inauguration, including Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai, Elon Musk, and TikTok CEO Xu Zi Chu. Their attendance, along with Trump's subsequent actions, marks a rare intersection of tech leadership and political events, signaling the high stakes involved in the TikTok saga.

8. Broader Tech News Highlights

Beyond TikTok, the episode covers several other noteworthy tech developments:

Fake Ryzen CPUs: There's a rise in counterfeit Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPUs. Users are cautioned to verify authenticity to avoid subpar performance, humorously likened to "Cheez Whiz."
China's Robot Marathon: China is set to host the world's first human-robot marathon in Beijing. Described by the South China Morning Post as a response to an aging society and declining birth rates, the event aims to showcase advancements in robotics and their potential societal impacts.
Bambu Lab's 3D Printers: The manufacturer faced backlash for restricting third-party software access to its 3D printers. Users circumvented these restrictions by extracting the authentication certificate for the Bambu Connect app. Bambu Lab later clarified that their update aimed to enhance security without blocking third-party software, addressing concerns over potential misuse in creating 3D-printed firearms.
Europol and Encryption: The chief of Europol emphasized that Big Tech should provide law enforcement access to encrypted messages used by criminals. This statement highlights the ongoing debate over privacy, security, and the responsibilities of tech companies in combating illicit activities.
Doom in Microsoft Word: Software engineer Wojciech Gray embedded the Doom game into a Microsoft Word document using a VBA macro, allowing the game to run as BMP files within the document. This creative endeavor underscores the playful and sometimes disruptive innovations within the tech community.

9. Conclusion

The episode of TechLinked offers a multifaceted examination of TikTok's precarious position in the U.S., intertwined with broader discussions on tech industry trends and challenges. From legal battles and political maneuvers to innovations and security concerns, the episode provides listeners with a detailed and engaging overview of the current state of tech and gaming culture.

Notable Quotes:

Host B (00:32):
“The legal murkiness here is probably why TikTok is still not relisted on Google or Apple's app stores.”
Host B (00:32):
“Trump says he wants an American entity to own 50% of TikTok. And after all this kerfuffle, representatives of ByteDance and the Chinese government have indicated they are open to discuss this idea.”
Host B (00:32):
“This is a complicated issue, but given that government back doors led to Chinese hackers basically having unfettered access to America's communications networks, and they're still in there, I'm just wondering what the real responsible thing to do is.”

Note: Advertisements, intros, outros, and non-content sections have been excluded from this summary to focus solely on the core discussions and insights presented in the episode.

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Transcript

A (0:00)

This episode is brought to you by Shopify. Forget the frustration of picking commerce platforms when you switch your business to Shopify, the global commerce platform that supercharges your selling. Wherever you sell with Shopify, you'll harness the same intuitive features, trusted apps, and powerful analytics used by the world's leading brands. Sign up today for your $1 per month trial period at shopify.com tech. All lowercase. That's shopify.com tech I typed tech news.

B (0:32)

Into the AI TechLinked Script Generator, but I got all this TikTok news instead. I mean, I guess it sounds kinda similar. I don't know. I think it misheard me. After the US Supreme Court upheld the TikTok ban law last week, TikTok took its own apps and services offline in the US on Saturday night, serving users a popup explaining that A law banning TikTok means that you can't use it. It's very helpful. I'm sure some people needed that clearly laid out, but by the following morning, TikTok said they were restoring service thanks to the now inaugurated US President and freshly minted meme coin peddler Donald Trump. It's not concerning, it's actually hilarious. And so based The President assured TikTok that their service providers won't be punished. But someone should probably tell that to Republican speaker of the House Mike Johnson and two Republican senators who promised to uphold the law and sue those same service providers. The legal murkiness here is probably why TikTok is still not relisted on Google or Apple's app stores, with Apple publishing a specific support document about the situation, saying it is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates. But I'm assuming Tim Cook forgot to add and to add a few extra fees on top because you even if TikTok isn't back on the app stores yet, it is online. But the same can't be said for other apps owned by the same parent company, ByteDance, including mobile editing app Capcut, which is just fine with Instagram, who published a Capcut competitor on the weekend called Edits. Worst of all, Gacha Game Marvel Snap, which is published by ByteDance, is is still offline. And before you finish writing that comment telling me that it's not a gotcha game. I haven't played it, so I wouldn't know, but it is. So what the heck just happened? Why can't we ban TikTok? Well, one analyst told the Associated Press that by abruptly shutting off service, TikTok proved how unpopular the Ban was among its users, which was a big surprise. We thought they'd be completely on board. But it doesn't seem like TikTok is getting off scott free. Trump says he wants an American entity to own 50% of TikTok. And after all this kerfuffle, representatives of ByteDance and the Chinese government have indicated they are open to discuss this idea. So now we still have TikTok and RedNote, the other Chinese app, paying us influencers to promote it as a TikTok replacement. And as a bonus, we also have new TikTok style Doom Scrolly video feeds on Blue sky and Twitter. But we don't need the TikTok replacements now. Can we, can we roll those back now? At the risk of sounding political, I just think it's worth pointing out how many big tech CEOs were at Trump's inauguration. Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai, and of course, Elon Musk. And even TikTok CEO Xu Zi Chu. This doesn't usually happen. And following Trump into a church service afterwards is also a bit unusual and uncomfortable. I mean, the sensation of your skin burning underneath your suit cannot be pleasant. Come on over to look at our sponsor, Squarespace, the all in one platform that empowers anyone to build a beautiful, more personalized website tailored to their unique needs. Just like we did with linusmediagroup.com your website has to be special. So make use of Squarespace's two decades of industry leading design expertise and cutting edge design intelligence AI features to unlock your strongest creative potential and your earning potential. Because Squarespace Payments is the easiest way to manage your payments in one place. Get started in just a few clicks and start receiving payments right away through popular methods like Klarna, Apple Pay, and Clearpay. Start building your website today and get 10% off your first purchase@squarespace.com TechLinked. Oh, oh, okay. I think the AI thought about it some more and now it wants to give me some non TikTok tech news. Well, if the AI says so. Okay. If you're in the market for a Ryzen X3D CPU, beware. Fake versions of the Ryzen 7.9800X3D are reportedly on the rise. And while that's nothing new, there's nothing worse than installing a new chip only to find out its secret sauce is Cheez Whiz. But when it comes to robots, China's tech is a lot more impressive, especially when it comes to running fast. So this spring, the country is set to hold the world's first human robot marathon in Beijing, which the South China Morning Post describes as part of efforts to combat the challenges of an aging society and a falling birth rate. I don't know how a robot marathon will help with that, but I mean, distract the sad people with fast robots. Hey, I hope it works. 3D printer manufacturer Bambu Lab was criticized this week for locking down its 3D printers, blocking or making it very difficult to control the them through third party software. Some frustrated users soon managed to extract the authentication certificate for the Bambu Connect app, and whether that had anything to do with it or not, Bambu Lab actually backtracked. Or maybe they'd say they clarified that their recent update will not block third party software, but rather ensure it continues to work while enhancing security so you won't be hacked while making all those 3D printed guns. The chief of Europol, the EU's primary law enforcement agency, told the Financial Times today that Big Tech has a responsibility to give the police access to criminals encrypted messages, which the criminals use to remain anonymous. But if they're anonymous, how do you know they're criminals? Ah, just kidding. This is a complicated issue, but given that government back doors led to Chinese hackers basically having unfettered access to America's communications networks, and they're still in there, I'm just wondering what the real responsible thing to do is. And last week, somebody slapped Doom into a PDF. This week, it's Microsoft Word. Yep, software engineer Wojciech Gray was apparently inspired by Doom PDF to set up a VBA macro to display the game's frames as BMP files in the document. It appears to run smoother than the PDF version, so give it a shot if you're looking to confuse your company's activity tracking software. This guy must be so productive. And if you want to be extra productive, come back here on Wednesday. We'll get you back up to speed on all the tech news so you can go back to working and won't be distracted. Because, I mean, why would you check Reddit? It's you. You already know everything.