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Apple Inc., the Cupertino, California-based iPhone manufacturer, had removed at least 29,800 apps from its Chinese app stores on Saturday, while the sweeping clean-up had involved over 26,000 unauthorized games, data from research firm Qimai had revealed.
Although, Apple Inc. did not comment immediately over its latest move to clamp down Chinese apps, though analysts said that the Apple move came forth as part of its crackdown on unauthorized Chinese games.
Apple removes thousands of Chinese apps from its Chinese store after end-of-June deadline
In point of fact, Apple Inc., the largest corporate taxpayer in the United States, had provided the game publishers alongside app developers with an end-of-June deadline to submit a Chinese Government issued license number in order to enable in-app purchases, however, the iPhone manufacturer had removed over 2,500 games and apps from its app store during the first week of July, while the July removal involved popular game publishers likes of Supercell and Zynga, a research firm SensorTower had revealed at that time.
Aside from that, while Apple Inc. appeared to be hunting down unlicensed games and apps from its Chinese app store, industry analysts were quoted saying that the Chinese Government had long been looking to enforce stiffer regulations on its gaming industry, eventually making it harder for the gamemaker and app developers to successfully go through the approval process which in effect would have enabled Apple Inc.
to generate revenues through in-app purchases. Meanwhile, adding that the latest Apple Inc.
move had wreaked havoc on entire iOS gaming industry in China, a marketing manager for AppInChina that helps app developers from abroad distribute their apps, Todd Kuhns said, “This affects small- and mid-sized developers’ incomes the most, but due to the difficulties of acquiring a business licence, it’s devastating to the whole iOS game industry in China”.
Nonetheless, multiple industry analysts who became overwhelmed by the latest Apple Inc. move said on Sunday that it remained unclear why Apple Inc. had been enforcing its regulation too strictly this year after years of compliance.