Skype has apparently joined the lengthening list of internet communication tools on China’s blacklist.
Apple stated this on Wednesday that it was ordered to clear its download store of apps that violate national laws.
Skype is no longer available for download on the China Apple Store or Android sites, with Chinese web-users saying it had been gone for weeks.
Apple in an emailed statement said: “We have been notified by the Ministry of Public Security that a number of VoIP (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.”
The company did not specify which laws such apps were found to have violated.
But China has tightened its already stringent online policing this year, including enacting new rules that require tech companies to store user data inside the country as well as imposing new restrictions on what is permissible content.
The moves have prompted speculation on the Chinese internet that authorities were moving against services with effective encryption, like WhatsApp and Skype, that make them less vulnerable to government monitoring.
