Tropez Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 Apple removes WhatsApp and Threads from App Store under orders from China Quote Apple has pulled WhatsApp and Threads, two Meta-owned apps, from its app store in China under orders from Beijing's top tech regulator, The Wall Street Journal reported. Why it matters: The move signals a new intensity in the U.S.'s conflict with China over access to key technologies and information, which has already resulted in a range of tariffs and exports controls on products such as computer chips and telecoms equipment. The big picture: China has been tightening its "Great Firewall" to censor the internet since 2000, and many major American tech and media companies no longer operate in the country. Apple also removed Signal and Telegram from the app store in China. The intrigue: China's move comes as the U.S. Congress moved closer to a Saturday vote on a package of laws that includes a measure forcing Chinese-owned Bytedance to sell TikTok's U.S. operations. Threat level: Apple has more at stake than Meta here. China is a the main manufacturing hub for the iPhone, and Apple generated $68 billion in sales in China in 2023. Tim Cook visited China in March to shore up relationships. WhatsApp had been downloaded around 15 million times from the App Store in China, and Threads just 470,000 times, according to Appfigures, New York Times reported. What they're saying: "We are obligated to follow the laws in the countries where we operate, even when we disagree," an Apple spokesperson told Wall Street Journal. The bottom line: Residents of China seeking unfiltered news, who can sometimes access it using foreign messaging apps through VPNs, now have a lot fewer choices. https://www.axios.com/2024/04/19/apple-china-whatsapp-threads-app-store This is a good thing, many US companies are known to spy on users and harvest data. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pendulum Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 What do you mean "This is a good thing, many US companies are known to spy on users and harvest data."? As if TikTok is not doing the same. Didn't the EU ban Chinese phones like Xiaomi and Huawei on the same grounds? It literally says that China is doing this as part of their Internet censorship. Quote The big picture: China has been tightening its "Great Firewall" to censor the internet since 2000, and many major American tech and media companies no longer operate in the country. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bends Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 Loud headline. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cameltoe Chariot Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 You missed a few words in that thread title sister 1 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonsterNavy Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 purposely not putting china in the title for a hit thread i'm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mariya Takeuchi Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 tbf i thought they were already banned there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archetype Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 (edited) 43 minutes ago, Mariya Takeuchi said: tbf i thought they were already banned there They technically are, the CCP banned all western social media networks a long time ago. They do this because most Western companies refuse to host user data in China due to the government's ability to access any and all data for whatever reason they wish. The US govt can only do this if they put out a documented request to each company, and those companies have the ability to reject a request if they do not think it is a matter of national security, and in worst case scenarios, sue the government (and win, like in Apple's case). Furthermore, these requests are unsealed after certain amounts of time, allowing the public to analyze and discuss the justification for said user data requests. 1 hour ago, Tropez said: This is a good thing, many US companies are known to spy on users and harvest data. There is a huge difference here. Western companies do this to sell you personalized ads against your will, which sucks. The EU is currently in the process of drafting a law that will require advertisers to give users the option to opt out of being sold personalized ads for free. Meta also currently offers an ad-free subscription model in the EU that prevents advertisers from using and selling your personal data. In comparison, Chinese companies do this to control conversations, block access to factual information, and prevent people from protesting, and worse, to comply with Chinese law. There is no such thing as privacy on the internet in China, the government knows what you're saying and to whom at any given moment, and can literally delete chat messages as you send them. Edited April 19 by Archetype 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stimulus Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 (edited) 1 hour ago, Tropez said: This is a good thing Absolutely ridiculous to describe China's banning of Signal, the non-profit encrypted messaging service preferred by Edward Snowden, as a "good thing". Edited April 19 by Stimulus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mean Trees Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Princess Aurora Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 Imagine trying to censor the Internet. CCP you'll be dealt with Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apasionata Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 I'll never understand anyone wanting deliberately to go live there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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