Apple Inc says it is removing virtual private network (VPN) services from its app store in China.
VPN services offer access to internal networks and are popular in several countries for office workers to access local server content, according to Reuters.
In January, Beijing passed laws seeking to ban all VPNs that are not approved by state regulators. Approved VPNs must use state network infrastructure.
In a statement on Sunday, an Apple spokeswoman confirmed it will remove apps that don’t comply with the law from its China App Store, including services based outside the country.
VPN provider ExpressVPN said on Saturday that it had received a notice from Apple that its software would be removed from the China App Store “because it includes content that is illegal in China”.
Other major providers, including VyprVPN and StarVPN, confirmed they also received the notice on Saturday from Apple.
Apple is in the middle of a localization drive in China, and named a new managing director for the region - a new role - this month.
It is also establishing a data center with a local partner in the southwestern province of Guizhou to comply with new Chinese cloud storage regulations.
VPN providers say that while the apps are not available on the store, users are still able to manually install them using VPN support built into Apple’s operating system.
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