Last month, Apple Inc. AAPL took down The New York Times NYT apps from its App Store in China, following a government “request”, per media reports.
Both the Chinese and English language versions of the app are no longer available in the country. The removal will not affect users who have downloaded it but they will not be able to access new content, further adds media reports.
An Apple spokesperson was quoted by media reports saying “We have been informed that the app is in violation of local regulations. As a result the app must be taken down off the China app store. When this situation changes the app store will once again offer the New York Times app for download in China.”
In 2012, The New York Times and the Chinese authorities had a fallout after NYT published several articles regarding the then Chinese premier Wen Jiabao and family’s wealth. The government blocked many of NYT’s websites in the region.
Analysts observe that China is extremely sensitive with respect to the Internet and has imposed significant restrictions on online search and other social networking activities. Widely popular platforms like Google’s YouTube as well as social networking websites such as Facebook FB and Twitter are not available in the country. Politically sensitive posts are often removed while searches involving sensitive keywords show no results.
Though Apple has not disclosed the exact violations, which caused the removal of the app, analysts observe that the requests stem from the “Provisions on the Administration of Mobile Internet Application Information Services” regulations approved in Jun 2016. Per the regulations, no app should “engage in activities prohibited by laws and regulations such as endangering national security, disrupting social order and violating the legitimate rights and interests of others.”
Apple maintains that it duly abides by regional laws. Earlier, Apple took down iTunes Movies and iBooks store just six months after launch in the country.
However, New York Times isn’t very happy with the decision. Its spokesperson has asked Apple to “reconsider” the decision.
At present Apple carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
In the past one year, Apple has underperformed the broader market. Shares of Apple have grown over 12.96% compared with the Zacks Computer Mini industry’s gain of 14.06%.
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A better-ranked stock in the broader tech space is LivePerson, Inc. LPSN, which carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
LivePerson has delivered an average positive earnings surprise of 56.43% over the trailing four quarters.
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