Apple Apps Blocked In China

Apple appears to have blocked iPhone applications related to the Dalai Lama in its China App Store, according to news reports.

This would make Apple the latest U.S. technology company to censor its services in China.

It is  also another skirmish between Chinese officials desperate to keep control of information in the country and rapidly advancing technology, which is making that aim more and more difficult.

A report on the IT World website says apps, appearing in most countries’ versions of the App Store, do not currently appear in the Chinese version.

And it is not only information about the Dalai Lama that’s being cut off. Another app related to Rebiya Kadeer, who like the Dalai Lama is an exiled minority leader out of favor with the China’s authorities, is also unavailable in the China App Store.

IT World says the apparent censorship comes after carrier China Unicom launched iPhone sales two months ago, making regulatory approval of the phone’s contents in the country necessary for the first time.

“We continue to comply with local laws,” Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller said in an e-mail when asked about the missing apps. “Not all apps are available in every country”