Apple Removes Thousands of Game Apps From China Store: Research Firm

Apple removed 29,800 apps from its Chinese app store on Saturday, including quite 26,000 games, consistent with data from research firm Qimai. The takedowns come amid a crackdown on unlicensed games by Chinese authorities. Apple didn’t immediately answer an invitation for comment.Earlier this year, Apple gave game publishers an end-of-June deadline to submit a government-issued licence number enabling users to form in-app purchases.

China’s Android app stores have long complied with those regulations. it’s not clear why Apple is enforcing them strictly this year.

The smartphone maker removed quite 2,500 titles from its app store over the primary week of July. Games suffering from the sweep included titles from Zynga and Supercell, research firm Sensor Tower reported at the time. The Chinese government has long sought to enforce stricter regulations on its gaming industry to get rid of sensitive content. The approval process for games looking to enable in-app purchases is long and sophisticated , hurting about the most important game developers, industry insiders say.

This affects small- and mid-sized developers’ incomes the foremost , but thanks to the difficulties of acquiring a business licence, it’s devastating to the entire iOS game industry in China,” said Todd Kuhn, marketing manager for AppIn China, a firm that helps overseas companies distribute their apps.