Apple is in talks with Chinese officials over a recent law that would ban many apps in its App Store in China, according to the Wall Street Journal. The tech giant is concerned that the move will significantly cripple their sales, as many of their highest downloaded apps—like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and X—will be affected by the restrictions.
Apps have long been used by Chinese iPhone users as a workaround to access these platforms, which are already banned on web browsers in the country by its “Great Firewall.”
Apple, China met to discuss Beijing’s crackdown on Western apps. New rules threaten the removal of Facebook, Instagram and X from iPhone’s China app store. https://t.co/EFFjhApFnC
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) September 29, 2023
But it became clear this would no longer be a possibility after China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced two months ago that it would restrict Apple and the companies behind the apps from making them available on Chinese devices.
(RELATED: Apple Shares Decline After China Reportedly Bans iPhones For Government Employees)
Failure to comply would lead to legal punishment for Apple. The app companies can choose to register with the government and follow newly introduced protocols, but few are likely to do this as it would entail giving data over to Chinese authorities and enforcing their Party-approved censorship dictates.
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Over the past decade, these apps have been downloaded more than 170 million times in China by mostly younger people who use VPNs to get around the firewall blocks according to market insight company Sensor Tower. Chinese social media users have used apps like X to spread awareness about protests against government policies on COVID.
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