Apple will remove thousands of unlicensed iPhone games in China from next month
- Developers and publishers in China have been told that their iOS games will need licences to continue operating from July
- There is no telling how long it will take to remove all unlicensed games on China’s App Store once the change comes into effect
Apple will start removing thousands of mobile games lacking government approval from its online App Store in China next month, closing a loophole that the likes of Rockstar Games have relied on for years.
Developers and publishers in China have been told that their iOS games will need licences to continue operating from July, according to people familiar with the matter. The decision ends the unofficial practice of allowing mobile games to be published, while awaiting authorisation from the country’s slow-moving regulators.
This has until now allowed games such as Grand Theft Auto, whose gory depictions of violence are unlikely to ever pass muster with Chinese censors, to be available within the country’s borders. China’s regulators require all video games that are either paid or offer in-app purchases to submit for review and obtain a licence before publication, and major Android app stores have enforced such rules since 2016. But unapproved games have flourished on Apple’s iPhone platform.
It is unclear why Apple – a target of numerous regulatory clampdowns in the past – has not moved as swiftly as other app stores in China, which are owned and operated by local technology giants like Alibaba Group Holding and Xiaomi Corp. Alibaba is the parent company of the South China Morning Post.
The latest approvals process took effect in 2019 amid confusion among industry players about the speed with which Beijing, known for months-long content reviews that may or may not lead to a monetisation licence, would process requests. For its part, Apple has begun ramping up oversight of its Chinese App Store, removing two podcast apps earlier this month at China’s request.
Back in February, Apple reminded iOS developers in the country to obtain licences for their titles by June 30. But it was only after prolonged uncertainty about enforcement that the iPhone maker explicitly told publishers that any unlicensed games after the deadline will be banned and removed from the local App Store, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is not public.
There is no telling how long it will take to remove all unlicensed games once the change comes into effect. Chinese gaming blog Gamelook earlier reported Apple’s upcoming enforcement.
An Apple representative declined to comment.