The question that millions of TikTokers and TikTok users alike are asking is the same: what will happen starting tomorrow? The supposed end of TikTok in the United States is on everyone’s lips and, unless a last-minute decision is made, the application may be banned. Its disappearance from the US market could cause a catastrophic shock wave in other countries, including Spain.
That TikTok could end up under the guillotine is something that has been around for longer than we can remember. Many warnings have been given about what could happen and, in the end, the situation has gotten out of control. The app is on the brink of the abyss and, barring a miracle due to the change of government, TikTok could disappear. Next, we are going to analyze the situation, what may happen in the next few hours and the possible consequences of the ban in the United States. We will also tell you what the fate of TikTok could be in our country.
TikTok in the United States
TikTok’s problems in North American territory are not new and tomorrow, January 19, 2025, they reach their turning point. The light on the app could go off and the more than 100 million Americans who use TikTok would be left, overnight, unable to access it. Time is running out and, in the next few hours, different movements could occur.
The situation, at the moment, indicates that TikTok will disappear tomorrow the 19th. But there are not many details about how this disconnection will occur. As experts have commented, first the app would disappear from Google Play and the App Store, ensuring the country that there would be no more TikTok downloads. It is possible that the app will still be available, but it will not receive any more updates and, at a certain point, it will stop working. In a more catastrophic, but also more realistic context, given that the forecasts of some analysts seem to be too optimistic, TikTok’s servers would immediately block all American IP addresses. That means that the app would continue to exist, of course, but that it would not be accessible within the United States. Possibly, that would be the moment of glory for VPN services, which surely saw an uptick in popularity and subscriptions thanks to it.
If that happens, on Sunday the app would no longer be available, but would it return next Monday the 20th? It should not be ruled out either. President Joe Biden’s administration has already made it clear that they are not going to mediate on this matter and that they are going to pass the buck to Donald Trump, who will begin office on Monday. Therefore, the re-elected president would begin his presidency again with a hot potato for which he may end up looking for a solution. Although the current president’s government had made it clear that ByteDance, the TikTok company, had to sell the app to an American investor, perhaps the demands that Trump may impose will be more flexible.
A possible entry into the company’s capital by a US entity, although perhaps without leaving the hands of ByteDance, could be one of the solutions. Some kind of agreement with Elon Musk involved would also sound like a very real possibility. We must not forget that there are experts who have indicated that, if China gives in and allows TikTok to be sold, it is most likely that the only person they would choose to sell the business to would be the owner of X. And all The world knows how much Musk likes to be in the spotlight and have new toys to enjoy on social networks. Getting hold of TikTok could be a curious way to start this new role that it will have in the United States government thanks to its relationship with Donald Trump.
What does this mean? That perhaps, one day after disappearing, TikTok will restart its engines to be available once again. It would be such a momentary shutdown that there would surely be people who wouldn’t even notice it. And, on the other hand, no one is unaware that it could also be a masterstroke for the video app to continue scaling and multiplying its cultural relevance among today’s young people. Imagine a social network like this that comes back from the dead the next day just as the presidency changes in the United States. The epic nature of the situation guarantees a spectacular media impact.
But will Donald Trump mediate all this or will he be on other things? Although it seems quite unlikely that the president will make the recovery of TikTok one of the main topics of his return to the White House, no one is unaware that, in his presentation as president, he will be accompanied by all of his technological leaders, from Tim Cook to Mark Zuckerberg or Musk himself. And even the main name that represents TikTok will also be among the guests at the celebration, increasing speculation about what could happen. If Trump gives in, TikTok would possibly have to meet a series of additional demands and, above all, open its algorithm more so that the United States can peer into the insides of the application.
What would happen in Spain and Europe?
There are many countries in which TikTok is an app that is being looked at askance. There is a lack of trust for an application that has millions of monthly users and that, for better or worse, has rewritten the way young people connect. These days, TikTok is used for all kinds of things, from the most shocking humor and trend videos to challenges or even as a way to spread news or information. Its audience, which in Spain totals more than 16 million users, has shown to give the application and its content a great deal of attention. As happened before with X and other applications, the TikTok generation is very integrated with the use of the app and uses it for practically everything.
Spain, like the rest of Europe, is divided between those who consider TikTok to be a highly trending video social network and those who believe that it could be a Trojan horse with which China spies on users in other countries. That idea is what led to the ban of the application in the United States, where they believe that the service is recording information from North American users and even using it to promote the Chinese government.
But in Europe the situation is managed in a different way. The European Union has imposed new conditions that have made TikTok commit to a series of important changes, such as stopping making personalized recommendations to users. This, of course, will require an investment. And, if TikTok disappears from the United States, it will suffer a drop in traffic and users that will complicate the development and maintenance of the app in the rest of the world.
Therefore, even if TikTok does not end up being banned in Europe as well, its disappearance from North America will not bode well for its future. If, on the other hand, Donald Trump finds a solution to the enforcement problem, it will likely mean that his path in the rest of the world will, theoretically, be safe. At the very least, it would be a notable injection of confidence for the video service. In any case, we must be aware of the situation and what happens in the next few hours. Even without being directly affected by what is happening on the other side of the world, the truth is that the TikTok drama is becoming one of the most interesting topics in recent hours. It is clear that, one way or another, the sauce at the new president’s inauguration is more than guaranteed.
