China's Cyberspace Administration has recently released its inaugural list of 26 mobile app stores that have dutifully provided their business details for regulatory oversight. Notably, Apple's App Store is conspicuously absent from this roster.
Published by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), the nation's foremost internet regulatory authority, this list encompasses "app distribution platforms" operated by major tech giants like Xiaomi, Samsung Electronics, Tencent Holdings, Baidu, Oppo, Vivo, and Huawei Technologies.
Despite Apple's position as the fourth-largest smartphone brand in China based on second-quarter shipments, its absence from this list raises questions.
Among the other registered platforms are Alipay, the payment platform managed by Ant Group, as well as ZTE, Coolpad, Nubia, and Lenovo.
This development follows a regulation introduced by the CAC in August 2022, which mandated that app distribution platforms, including app stores and mini-program platforms like WeChat, must submit specific information for registration.
This regulation places app stores in charge of monitoring the content of apps within their stores and necessitates the rejection of apps that contain "illegal or harmful content." It also stipulates that app stores must collaborate with and support "supervision and inspection" by the CAC and other regulatory bodies.
The CAC, in a statement accompanying the published list, emphasized that it does not endorse the service capabilities or existing apps of any platform.
Back in August, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology revealed that failure to register during the September to March period could result in penalties, although the specific consequences were not detailed.
The requirement for mobile app providers to share business information with the government has raised concerns among independent Chinese software developers, who fear that it could stifle local innovation and hinder access to overseas software.
The filing process, which can take up to 20 days, might prevent local providers from promptly launching apps and making ongoing improvements through rapid updates, a common business model.
In recent years, Beijing has intensified its internet regulation efforts, targeting a wide range of content, from online education to video games. The total number of apps in China, a barometer of the country's digital economy, has also declined. Following Beijing's regulatory crackdown on major internet firms, there were 2.6 million apps operating in China last year, marking a 25% decrease from the 3.5 million available in 2020.
0 Comments: