A week after other companies did so, Apple has finally complied with a Chinese app law that requires developers to have a registered local company in the country.
The move comes after it was suggested that social media apps like X, Instagram, and Facebook would have to be removed from the Chinese version of the App Store …
Chinese app law
While China has long banned usage of Western social media apps, this has been enforced by the so-called Great Firewall of China. The actual apps have remained available in App Store and Google Play, and it has been possible to use them via a VPN – though using VPN apps is also illegal.
Back in August, the Chinese government announced a new restriction on foreign apps.
A new law will require all developers to “file business details” with the Chinese government, in what some are saying amounts to requesting permission to make an app available through the App Store […]
In order to comply with the new rules, app developers now must either have a company in China or work with a local publisher.
Android app stores last week began complying with the law by requiring company registration details for foreign apps. In all, 26 companies complied – but Apple was notably absent from the list.
A range of Android app stores have taken action to comply with the latest developer clampdown in China, meeting a deadline of the end of August. Several days past the deadline, however, Apple’s Chinese App Store appears to have taken no action to comply with the new law.
Apple took action after major social media apps threatened
The WSJ last week reported that Apple had been told that it must “strictly implement rules” that ban unregistered foreign apps on the App Store. It was implied that the government had drawn particular attention to major social media apps.
Most notably, this could impact social media apps including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Twitter (currently known as X).
This seems to have proven effective, with Reuters today reporting that Apple has finally complied with the Chinese app law.
Apple began last Friday requiring app developers to submit the “internet content provider (ICP) filing” when they publish new apps on its App Store, it said on its website for developers.
While the latest report refers to “new” apps, the law applies equally to existing ones.
Tensions between the US and China remain high, with the Chinese government “strongly discouraging” its own employees from using iPhones, using vague claims of security incidents as cover. Questions are also being asked about how Chinese companies managed to produce 5G chips for Huawei smartphones in a suspected sanctions breach or act of industrial espionage against US companies.
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