Apple has never been characterized as a company that defends rights and freedoms in China, something that it does constantly in the rest of the world. One more proof of the submission of the Chinese government towards Apple is found in the disappearance of RSS applications.
RSS applications are nothing more than content aggregators, content that the user must add and without which, the application is meaningless. However, according to the authorities, China offers content considered illegal in the country.
I received the same message today. Fiery Feeds Is now no longer available on the Chinese App Store as well. https://t.co/3VFQKx2O1R
- Fiery Feeds (@FieryFeeds) September 28, 2020
The content that RSS applications have access to is the same that we can find on the web where the content is published. The latest apps that have been affected with this movement are Reeder y Fiery Feeds, a movement that occurs 3 years after the expulsion of the Inoreader RSS application from the Chinese App Store.
Same here. Reeder 4 (iOS) was also removed from the Chinese App Store. https://t.co/95aXs4MaEh
- Reeder (@reederapp) September 29, 2020
In the email that Apple has sent to the developers of both applications, we can read:
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We are writing to notify you that your application will be removed from the China App Store because it contains content that is illegal in China, that does not meet the App Store review guidelines.
Applications must meet all legal requirements wherever you make them available (if you are unsure, consult an attorney). We know these things are complicated, but it is your responsibility to understand and ensure that your application complies with all local laws, but only with the guidelines listed below. And of course, applications that request, promote or encourage criminal or clearly reckless behavior will be rejected. Even if your app has been removed from the China app store, it is still available in the app stores in the other territories that you selected in iTunes Connect.
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We do not fully understand the reason why they have passed 3 years since Inforeader removal of China and the decision that the Chinese government has taken this week to eliminate other RSS applications available in the country.
It is not the first, nor will it be the last
In 2016, Apple banned the removal of applications from the App Store at the request of the Chinese government, removing the official application of the New York Times newspaper from the Chinese App Store. A little over a year ago, removed all apps that offer VPN services.
More recently it removed the Quartz app for reporting on protests in the country and HKmap.live that according to the government of the country, violated Hong Kong law reporting where the police were, when their real function was to report where the demonstrations against the intervention of China in the country were located. The podcast apps others of the harmed.
A few months ago, Apple retired more than 30.000 applications available in the Chinese App Store for not having the license issued by the government of the country to be able to offer their applications in the country.