Apple is locking down the iPhone App Store to comply with a new law in China
theverge.com
China forced Apple to remove any app where the developer isn't registered in China. Meaning they asked Apple to remove 95% of the apps and games available in the App Store.
Poor iPhone users, basically they will get a "wechat handheld" and that's it...
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Third party app stores have zero bearing on this matter. China wants every developer to be registered. If new app stores were allowed, then those stores would have to comply and have all their developers registered.
This has nothing to do with App Store monopolies. Not even sure how the two got mixed together.
Apple makes the situation worse, by having an exclusive app store, and not allowing people to load apps directly. Without a developer key, having to renew every week, etc it's effectively not allowing.
F Droid is currently accessible from China, I believe. Even if it isn't, you can share Android apps via Bluetooth, nearby. It's a far more partitionable and repairable situation with f Droid then with the Apple store.
So if iOS allows other app stores access, then that will give people more options inside of China
The number of stores are irrelevant, not sure how you keep missing this. And I’m not sure why you think just because you have more stores, it will somehow circumvent the new law.
If you add 3 more App Stores, the outcome will be most apps will be sold in all of them, I mean why wouldn’t you want your product in as many stores as possible? Again, not sure why you think more stores means anything or can be used to circumvent Chinese laws.
And China won’t forget about F Droid. If they want devs registered, then it’s going to hit their nation, not a specific company. They will all be brought under the new rule. One store, hundred stores, google, Apple, whomever.
The stores aren't relevant, the operating system allowing apps to run that aren't signed by an Apple certificate is the important thing
Given the choice to sideload apps, I'm sure it wouldn't matter what store you get it from--just the fact that you can install the apps. I'm sure people can skirt developer registration.
Exactly. The store is irrelevant, registration is what China is after.
Also, you’re wrong about developers bypassing registration. That kind of shit isn’t possible in China.
So it's the same story for Android?
Yup, but since Google is not in China, we don't hear about Google complying, but every other Chinese app store is complying with this new law.
Yup