Apple Blocks US Users From Downloading ByteDance's Chinese Apps (wired.com)
- Reference: 0180920010
- News link: https://apple.slashdot.org/story/26/03/06/1910245/apple-blocks-us-users-from-downloading-bytedances-chinese-apps
- Source link: https://www.wired.com/story/bytedance-apps-are-no-longer-available-in-us-app-stores/
> While TikTok operates in the United States under new ownership, Apple has deployed technical restrictions to [1]block iOS users in the United States from downloading other apps made by the video platform's Chinese parent organization ByteDance . ByteDance owns a vast array of different apps spanning social media, entertainment, artificial intelligence, and other sectors. The leading one is Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, which has over 1 billion monthly active users. While most of those users reside in China, iPhone owners around the world have traditionally been able to download these apps from anywhere without using a VPN, as long as they have a valid App Store account registered in China.
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> That's not true anymore. Starting in late January, iPhone users in the U.S. with Chinese App Store accounts began reporting that they were encountering new obstacles when they tried to download apps developed by ByteDance. WIRED has confirmed that even with a valid Chinese App Store account, downloading or updating a ByteDance-owned Chinese app is blocked on Apple devices located in the United States. Instead, a pop-up window appears that says, "This app is unavailable in the country or region you're in." The restriction appears to apply only to ByteDance-owned apps and not those developed by other Chinese companies.
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> The timing and technical specifics suggest the restriction is related to the deal TikTok [2]agreed to in January to divest Chinese ownership of its U.S. operations. The agreement was the result of the so-called TikTok ban law passed by Congress in 2024, which also barred companies like Apple and Google from distributing other apps majority-owned by ByteDance. The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act states that no company can "distribute, maintain, or update" any app majority-controlled by ByteDance "within the land or maritime borders of the United States."
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> The law was primarily aimed at TikTok, which has more than 100 million users in the U.S. and had been the subject of years of debate in Washington over whether its Chinese ownership posed a national security risk. But ByteDance also has dozens of other apps that at some point were also removed from Apple's and Google's app stores in the U.S.. Now it seems like the scope of impact has reached even more apps that are not technically designed for U.S. audiences, such as Douyin, the AI chatbot Doubao, and the fiction reading platform Fanqie Novel.
[1] https://www.wired.com/story/bytedance-apps-are-no-longer-available-in-us-app-stores/
[2] https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/01/23/0817218/tiktok-finalizes-deal-to-form-new-american-entity
The letter of the law (Score:2, Troll)
> The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act states that no company can "distribute, maintain, or update" any app majority-controlled by ByteDance "within the land or maritime borders of the United States."
Apple is following the law as written. So... Why is this a headline now?
Re: (Score:2)
And why is this? It is absolutely ridiculous that people are so clueless that they even still TRY to use the Chinese apps. Even if spun off to American "ownership" the main people in the company are extensions of the CCP. It has been proven that even with just the app itself in "normal" mode that the data is used in negative to find areas of interest. Any area where no GPS tracking comes from their app (because it is disallowed in certain areas) causes them to dig into it to find out if it is something wort
Re: What gives them this right? (Score:1)
The terms and conditions they agreed to with their Apple device purchase in sure.
Mmmmmmm. Walled garden. Tastes like a well-polished boot.