Apple pulled more than 47,000 apps from the Chinese App Store previously this month, as first reported by AppInChina. That relocation wasnt unexpected, as Apple just recently enacted a policy modification to get rid of a loophole that previously permitted paid video games and games with in-app purchases to be sold despite the fact that they were still waiting for approval from Chinese regulators.
As tensions rise between the US and China, Apples Chinese operations– that include millions of Apple consumers and much of the businesss production operation– could be at risk. A brand-new report in The Information argues that China may currently be closing the loopholes made use of by Apple in previous years, beginning with the recent removal of thousands of apps from the Chinese App Store. That could potentially spell trouble for the companys future in the country.
But Apples whole App Store operation in China also depends upon a loophole of its own, the report claims. Foreign app stores in China are typically needed to be joint endeavors with a Chinese partner thats a bulk owner and operator, according to the report, but Apple operates the App Store by itself. Apple has also apparently avoided sharing the source code for iOS with China up until now, having worked out an exemption with the Chinese government to not need to do so.
Recently, the Trump administration has taken substantial actions versus Chinese tech companies, making it harder for some to do service in the United States. President Trump issued executive orders previously this month that would ban TikTok and WeChat, owned by Chinese tech giants ByteDance and Tencent, in the United States. The Trump administration has actually likewise tightened restrictions on Chinese phone maker Huawei.
That wasnt the very first time Apple had been strong-armed into making substantial changes to its services in China, either. For instance, Chinese regulators required Apple to shut down the iBookstore and iTunes Movies in China in April 2016, simply six months after Apple launched those shops in the country.
