China has been regulating foreign products that come to the country but Apple seems to have gained its favor, unlike other American companies. However, the iPhone maker now faces a regulatory push in China that could change its relations with the country. Apple's iTunes Movies and iBooks Store were stopped last week.
The Cupertino, California-based tech titan had the approval of the Chinese government to introduce their services. The two services were shut down when a regulator, China's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television demanded the closing, The New York Times reported.
The said Apple services were shut down after Beijing introduced regulations in March that impose strict control on online publishing, especially for foreign companies. When the services are accessed, a message would display "unusable" in Chinese, according to Reuters.
"We hope to make books and movies available again to our customers in China as soon as possible," an Apple spokeswoman based in Beijing told the United Kingdom-based news agency. The move was quite surprising, considering Apple's record in the country.
The iPhone maker successfully introduced some of its products, like the mobile payment system Apple Pay. The firm relies on its products and the smooth operation of its software.
Closing revenue generators iBooks store and iTunes services in China could seriously affect the sales of Apple devices. The current iPhones are already experiencing plummet of sales. Apple relies on China for sales growth as the country has been Apple's second-largest market following the United States, but things are different now with the recent changes.
The shutdown of iTunes movies and iBooks store may make Apple vulnerable to the heightened scrutiny of the Chinese government, just like what American tech firms have been facing in China. Chinese officials became more cautious when Edward J. Snowden revealed in 2013 that Washington used American tech firms to conduct cyber espionage.
Following the shutdown, China President Xi Jinping held a meeting on April 19 to discuss about the country's restrictive Internet policies. Top leaders in tech were at the meeting as well, such as Jack Ma and Ren Zhengfei of e-commerce firm Alibaba and Chinese original equipment manufacturer Huawei.
The video below announces the shutdown of Apple's iTunes movies and iBooks store.