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Photo: tabtimes.com
Apple's rather bumpy ride in China continues with the state-run People's Daily including the company's App Store in a list of online stores and websites investigated for 'providing pornographic content' in China.
It's an ironic charge for a company with a well-known opposition to pornography. Apple does not allow pornographic content in its App Store, and has a record of removing apps which are found to be in breach of this term …
Apple had previously come under fire for warranty policies, something which appeared to have been resolved by a statement and apology by Tim Cook.
The latest controversy appears for the moment to be low-key. The Wall Street Journal reports:
The People's Daily article is not featured prominently in Wednesday's paper, nor does it make efforts to emphasize Apple, which is listed next to the names of other app stores singled out in the middle of the second paragraph of the article …
Nonetheless the mention does put Apple in an uncomfortable parallel with Google. Some analysts compared Apple's run-in with state media last month to Google's difficulties with China Central Television, which accused the company of spreading pornography in 2009. The accusations presaged deeper difficulties in China, including hacking attacks that led Google to move its operations to Hong Kong in 2010.
