skype logoMicrosoft has confirmed that Skype has been "temporarily removed" from the App Store on iPhone and iPad, according to a statement given to The New York Times.

Apple told The New York Times that it was forced to remove a number of voice and video calling apps from the App Store in China to comply with laws in the country.

We have been notified by the Ministry of Public Security that a number of voice over internet protocol apps do not comply with local law. Therefore these apps have been removed from the app store in China. These apps remain available in all other markets where they do business.

Skype has been unavailable on the App Store since at least late October, according to users on Twitter and other websites. The service appears to function normally still for users who have already installed the app.

Skype is the latest victim of China's strict internet filters, colloquially known as the Great Firewall. Earlier this year, Apple was forced to remove many VPN apps from the App Store in China due to regulations, while other apps affected in the past or present include WhatsApp, Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter.

Microsoft wouldn't comment on why Skype is also unavailable on at least a few major third-party Android app stores. Many of Google's services, including Gmail and YouTube, have been blocked in China for several years.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Top Rated Comments

thadoggfather Avatar
103 months ago
Are you suggesting Apple should break the law in China? Stop doing business in China? I mean, I see the rhetoric. I just don't know what it means or what solution you're proposing.
No the lack of a fight put up, is what concerns me. Even a theatrical fight or some snarky comments about how it’s the wrong decision for China to enforce but ...

Cook can criticize the president of US but doesn’t even argue with China.

Just something to think about

I’m not gonna chime in much in this thread I’m in like every pol one (of my own will)
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
69Mustang Avatar
103 months ago
Apple doesn’t even put up a fight. This is resistance Apple, isn’t it?

No vpn? Fine
No skype? Fine

Makes you wonder how much of a fight they put up on the backend for users privacy here in the US, something Tim Cook loves to boast about as a brand differentiator

I think it’s time for a new person to run Apple

Tim is the swamp
Are you suggesting Apple should break the law in China? Stop doing business in China? I mean, I see the rhetoric. I just don't know what it means or what solution you're proposing.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thadoggfather Avatar
103 months ago
Apple doesn’t even put up a fight. This is resistance Apple, isn’t it?

No vpn? Fine
No skype? Fine

Makes you wonder how much of a fight they put up on the backend for users privacy here in the US, something Tim Cook loves to boast about as a brand differentiator

I think it’s time for a new person to run Apple

Tim is the swamp
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
asdavis10 Avatar
103 months ago
Apple (and other companies) are so powerless in China. They comply to every draconian request from the government. And the consumers there are slowly being left with neutered hardware. Eventually the Chinese government will just ask for the source code. I wonder how far this goes. Will China stop companies from manufacturing there if companies start to pull their products from the market?
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kaibelf Avatar
103 months ago
Apple doesn’t even put up a fight. This is resistance Apple, isn’t it?

No vpn? Fine
No skype? Fine

Makes you wonder how much of a fight they put up on the backend for users privacy here in the US, something Tim Cook loves to boast about as a brand differentiator

I think it’s time for a new person to run Apple

Tim is the swamp
Oh please. Apple (and the US, and that includes yourself and me) are in absolutely no position to dictate to another nation how they should run their country or set their laws. What's next? Complain that we don't listen to the guys who run Iran regarding our broadcast standards? And exactly who would run Apple and would magically have authority over any other country?

Let's be honest - the US isn't the world's overlord and we're guilty of many many of our own abuses right here at home as well as many questionable things we've done abroad. Want to see "the swamp?" It's in every American mirror because we've never demanded anything differently because it was "keeping us safe," "manifest destiny" or any other number of catchphrases that we used to excuse our actions.
[doublepost=1511279099][/doublepost]


Cook can criticize the president of US but doesn’t even argue with China.
That's because Cook is an American citizen and that's kind of part of Americans' civic duty. That doesn't mean we have the right to demand squat from any other nation or its leaders.
[doublepost=1511279196][/doublepost]
China. The only country which can break end to end encryption. By pointing the Renminbi gun to Timmy's head.
The app isn't on the store. They didn't break the encryption. Major fundamental difference. That's like saying since the US doesn't nationally allow people to smoke pot, somehow it's lost its effects in Amsterdam and people can't get high there.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
unclemax Avatar
103 months ago
What about iMessages and FaceTime then? Do they… comply with the Ministry of Public Security regulations?

Given all this anti-encryption frenzy in China (I was present there when WhatsApp suddenly stopped working in the end of September) I am wondering how supposedly end-to-end encrypted iMessages are still allowed.
[doublepost=1511273381][/doublepost]
Apple (and other companies) are so powerless in China. They comply to every draconian request from the government. And the consumers there are slowly being left with neutered hardware. Eventually the Chinese government will just ask for the source code. I wonder how far this goes. Will China stop companies from manufacturing there if companies start to pull their products from the market?
Because those requests have a sound legal basis in that country. There are laws that say that pretty much every entity (a person or a company) has to comply with security services and facilitate intelligence gathering as per their request.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

M5 MacBook Pro

Apple Announces New 14-Inch MacBook Pro With M5 Chip

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:07 am PDT by
Apple today updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with its new M5 chip, which is also available in updated iPad Pro and Vision Pro models. In addition, the base 14-inch MacBook Pro can now be configured with up to 4TB of storage on Apple's online store, whereas the previous model maxed out at 2TB. However, the maximum amount of unified RAM available for this model remains 32GB. Like...
Apple iPad Pro hero M5

Apple Debuts New iPad Pro With M5 Chip, Faster Charging, and More

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:16 am PDT by
Apple today announced the next-generation iPad Pro, featuring the custom-designed M5, C1X, and N1 chips. The M5 chip has up to a 10-core CPU, with four performance cores and six efficiency cores. It features a next-generation GPU with Neural Accelerator in each core, allowing the new iPad Pro to deliver up to 3.5x the AI performance than the previous model, and a third-generation ray-tracing ...
iphone air thickness

Apple Said to Cut iPhone Air Production Amid Underwhelming Sales

Friday October 17, 2025 8:29 am PDT by
Apple plans to cut production of the iPhone Air amid underwhelming sales performance, Japan's Mizuho Securities believes (via The Elec). The Japanese investment banking and securities firm claims that the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are seeing higher sales than their predecessors during the same period last year, while the standard iPhone 17 is a major success, performing...
maxresdefault

Here's Everything Apple Announced Today

Wednesday October 15, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We didn't get a second fall event this year, but Apple did unveil updated products with a series of press releases that went out today. The M5 chip made an appearance in new MacBook Pro, Vision Pro, and iPad Pro models. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up our coverage and highlighted the main feature changes for each device below. MacBook Pro M5...
HomePod mini and Apple TV

Apple's Next Rumored Products: New HomePod Mini, Apple TV, and More

Thursday October 16, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Vision Pro with its next-generation M5 chip, but previous rumors have indicated that the company still plans to announce at least a few additional products before the end of the year. The following Apple products have at one point been rumored to be updated in 2025, although it is unclear if the timeframe for any of them has...
Vision Pro M5 Announcement

Apple Updates Vision Pro With M5 Chip, Dual Knit Band, and 120Hz Support

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:14 am PDT by
Apple today updated the Vision Pro headset with its next-generation M5 chip for faster performance, and a more comfortable Dual Knit Band. The M5 chip has a 10-core CPU, a 10-core GPU with Neural Accelerators, and a 16-core Neural Engine, and we have confirmed the Vision Pro still has 16GB of RAM. With the M5 chip, the Vision Pro offers faster performance and longer battery life compared...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

New 14-Inch MacBook Pro Has Two Key Upgrades Beyond the M5 Chip

Thursday October 16, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with an M5 chip, and there are two key storage-related upgrades beyond that chip bump. First, Apple says the new 14-inch MacBook Pro offers up to 2× faster SSD performance than the equivalent previous-generation model, so read and write speeds should get a significant boost. Apple says it is using "the latest storage technology," ...
MacBook Pro M5 Screen

New MacBook Pro Does Not Include a Charger in the Box in Europe

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:59 am PDT by
The new 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M5 chip does not include a charger in the box in European countries, including the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, and others, according to Apple's online store. In the U.S. and all other countries outside of Europe, the new MacBook Pro comes with Apple's 70W USB-C Power Adapter, but European customers miss out....
airpods max 2024 colors

AirPods Max 2: Everything We Know So Far

Tuesday October 14, 2025 8:43 am PDT by
Apple's AirPods Max have now been available for almost five years, so what do we know about the second-generation version? According to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the new AirPods Max will be lighter than the current ones, but exactly how much is as yet known. The current AirPods Max weigh 0.85 pounds (386.2 grams), excluding the charging case, making it one of the heavier...
macbook pro blue

Apple's M5 MacBook Pro Imminent: What to Expect

Tuesday October 14, 2025 4:35 pm PDT by
Apple is going to launch a new version of the MacBook Pro as soon as tomorrow, so we thought we'd go over what to expect from Apple's upcoming Mac. M5 Chip The MacBook Pro will be one of the first new devices to use the next-generation M5 chip, which will replace the M4 chip. The M5 is built on TSMC's more advanced 3-nanometer process, and it will bring speed and efficiency improvements. ...