TikTok to let US Android users download app via kits on its website

By Kanishka Singh and Jasper Ward

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -TikTok said on Friday it was allowing U.S. Android users to download and connect to the short video app through package kits on its website, in an effort to circumvent restrictions on the popular platform in the country.

Apple and Google have not reinstated TikTok to their app stores since a U.S. law took effect on January 19 requiring its Chinese owner ByteDance either to sell it on national security grounds or face a ban.

President Donald Trump, who took office the day after the law went into effect, signed an executive order seeking to delay by 75 days the enforcement of the law.

Trump has said that he was in talks with multiple people over TikTok's purchase and would likely have a decision on the app's future this month. It has about 170 million American users.

The president signed an executive order on Monday ordering the creation of a sovereign wealth fund within the next year, saying it could potentially buy TikTok.

U.S. officials have warned that under ByteDance, there was a risk of Americans' data being misused.

Free speech advocates have opposed TikTok's ban under the law, which was overwhelmingly passed by Congress and signed by then-President Joe Biden.

The company says U.S. officials misstated its ties to China, arguing its content recommendation engine and user data are stored in the United States on cloud servers operated by Oracle, while content moderation decisions that affect American users are also made in the United States.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Sam Holmes and William Mallard)