Popular social networks such as Facebook, X (old Twitter), and Instagram may be removed from the App Store on iPhones in China.
According to WSJ, China has sent a request to Apple to comply with regulations on managing applications of foreign origin on the App Store software space (for iOS, iPadOS). For many years, the world’s most populous country has been tightening content filters on the internet to prevent domestic users from accessing some foreign websites and applications. To use social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, WhatsApp, or Google services, people connecting to the Chinese domestic internet are forced to use a VPN (personal virtual network).
Statistics from research company Sensor Tower show that in the past 10 years, there have been more than 170 million downloads of the above social networking/messaging software in China alone. Of these, Instagram has nearly 54 million views since 2012, Facebook has 37 million, YouTube has 34 million, X has 33 million, and the last with 13 million downloads is WhatsApp.
With the new regulations, firewalls – tools to prevent access to banned Chinese websites and services – will be “filled” with vulnerabilities that have been exploited for a long time. Specifically, Apple cannot provide services from abroad if the application has not been registered with a regulatory agency. But registration is not easy, according to experts, because it involves data transfer and censorship. If you don’t want to be fined, Apple is forced to remove the application from the App Store.
The new regulations apply to all foreign businesses operating in the same field, but “defective apples” are greatly affected because there are about 1,000 unregistered software. At the same time, two domestic businesses, Huawei and Xiaomi, updated the rules and called on software developers to complete registration.
If registration is not possible, Apple will have to delete many applications from the software store, a service that is contributing significantly to its business indicators in China. To operate smoothly here, Apple has made many concessions. In 2020, the American company removed thousands of applications related to video games.
Therefore, Chinese technology experts believe that Apple will continue to comply with the new regulations, and in the future, software from domestic developers will dominate the App Store here