INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Earlier this week, it came to light that Apple had removed a number of VoIP-based calling apps from the App Store, at the request of the
The apps had been using CallKit, Apple new developer toolset that provides the calling interface for VoIP apps, freeing up developers to
handle the backend communications
China government asked developers, by way of Apple, to remove CallKit from their apps sold on the China App Store, or they can remove their
apps entirely.
Notices Apple sent out to the developers were first spotted by 9to5Mac, who shared a snippet from of one of the emails.
The
email states that the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) &requested that CallKit be deactivated in app apps
available on the China App Store,& and informed the developer they would need to comply with this regulation in order to have their app
approved.
The regulation only impacts apps distributed in the China App Store.
We understand that the apps can still use CallKit and be sold
in other markets outside the region.
Apple is not publicly commenting on the matter.
The pushback against CallKit is another means of
discouraging people from developing or using VoIP services in China, without having to go so far as to ban the apps directly
It wouldn&t be the first time China has cracked down in this area
In November, Microsoft Skype was also pulled from the Apple and Android app stores.
The government also last year ordered VPN apps, which
help users route around the Great Firewall, to be pulled from app stores & another order with which Apple complied.
Other social media apps,
like WhatsApp and Facebook, are also disrupted at times, and newspapers& apps like those from The NYT and WSJ are blocked, too.
According to
data pulled by app store intelligence firm Sensor Tower, two dozen apps with CallKit had been removed during the week prior to the news
reports.
That list, along with the date removed and publisher name, is below:
Sensor Tower notes it possible that there are other apps
removed from additional stores, but doesn&t have that data.
In addition, this list only includes those apps that have been downloaded enough
times to rank in the top 1,500 of an app category at some point & beyond that Sensor Tower wouldn&t pick it up
But an app that wasn&t ranked would have had so few downloads that the impact of its removal would be minimal.
Nevertheless, you can see
list includes a few well-known names, including Cisco Webex Teams and Google Duo video calling app, among those from other operators and
VoIP calling providers.
The full text of Apple email is below:
From Apple
5
Legal: Preamble
Guideline 5.0 & Legal
Recently, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) requested that CallKit
functionality be deactivated in all apps available on the China App Store
During our review, we found that your app currently includes CallKit functionality and has China listed as an available territory in iTunes
Connect.
Next Steps
This app cannot be approved with CallKit functionality active in China
Please make the appropriate changes and resubmit this app for review
If you have already ensured that CallKit functionality is not active in China, you may reply to this message in Resolution Center to confirm
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) call functionality continues to be allowed but can no longer take advantage of CallKit intuitive look
CallKit can continue to be used in apps outside of China.
