Apple has removed two of the most popular gay dating apps in China from its App Store there to comply with a government order.
The company gave the usual statement it makes in such circumstances, but did provide little more detail in this particular case …
Wired reports that the two apps have been removed from both the iOS App Store and several Android App Stores in China.
Apple has removed two of the most popular gay dating apps in China from the App Store after receiving an order from China’s main internet regulator and censorship authority, WIRED has learned. The move comes as reports of Blued and Finka disappearing from the iOS App Store and several Android app stores circulated on Chinese social media over the weekend.
International LGBTQ+ dating apps like Grindr were removed back in 2022.
Apple typically issues a boilerplate statement that it follows the laws in each of the countries in which it operates, but the company did get a little more specific this time.
“We follow the laws in the countries where we operate. Based on an order from the Cyberspace Administration of China, we have removed these two apps from the China storefront only,” an Apple spokesperson said in an email. Apple clarified that the apps have not been available in other countries for some time. “Earlier this year, the developer of Finka elected to remove the app from storefronts outside of China, and Blued was available only in China.”
Back in 2020, Blued had more than 49 million registered users according to the developer.
Top comment by AppleDev
This is a negative side of the App Store. If side-loading were allowed people could find a way. It also wouldn’t make it Apple’s responsibility to appease governments over third-party apps.
The report says that the removal of the apps appears to be part of a broader crackdown within the country.
China decriminalized homosexuality in the 1990s, but the government does not recognize same-sex marriage. In recent years, China’s LGBTQ+ community has increasingly come under pressure as the Chinese Communist Party tightens its control over civil society and free expression. Several prominent gay rights organizations in China have shut down, and social media companies now frequently censor LGBTQ+ content and accounts.
9to5Mac’s Take
Apple does have to comply with local laws or face the consequences, which could be particularly dramatic given that China is still the company’s primary manufacturing hub as well as an extremely large market for its products.
All the same, it’s never a good look for the company when it is forced to act against its own values. The contrast is particularly stark given that CEO Tim Cook made a decision to sacrifice his own privacy in order to come out as gay because he saw it as a moral imperative to help people insist on their equality.
If hearing that the CEO of Apple is gay can help someone struggling to come to terms with who he or she is, or bring comfort to anyone who feels alone, or inspire people to insist on their equality, then it’s worth the trade-off with my own privacy.
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