Apple has bowed to further government regulations in China.
From now on, developers must prove that they have a government license for this purpose when submitting apps. Third-party stores in the country have been implementing this rule for some time, according to Reuters reported.
Licenses only for Chinese companies or companies close to the country
Now Apple also requires such a license from developers. Previously, it was still possible to offer apps in China from abroad due to the lack of need to have one. That is no longer the case.
In order to obtain such a license, developers must either work in China or work with a Chinese publishing company. In both cases, of course, state censorship takes effect.
The update to the App Store rules was probably based on a request from government authorities to Apple. They strongly demanded that Apple comply with the licensing rules, which has now happened. Apple itself has not made an official statement on the matter.
