The 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre is coming up this June, but you won’t hear anything about it on Apple Music.
Chinese journalists recently discovered that Apple Music’s Chinese service censored a song that mentions the 1989 pro-democracy protests where thousands of people were killed. The topic is extremely controversial for the Chinese Communist Party and it appears that Apple is just fine with blotting it out if that’s the price of doing business in China.
Federal agents recently busted two college students who allegedly made nearly $1 million by returning fake iPhones to Apple.
Officials charged Quran Juan and Yangyangg Zhou, both Chinese nationals attending college in Oregon, with participating in a counterfeit iPhone scam. The duo reportedly submitted more than 2,000 iPhones to Apple claiming, the devices were broken and wouldn’t power on. The fake iPhones were only worth about $30, allowing the scammers to pocket nearly $600 for each successful return, authorities said.
Apple has cut the prices on multiple devices in China. Prices on everything from iPhones and iPads to Macs and AirPods have been reduced by up to 6 percent.
The slashed prices comes a few months after Apple pinned declining revenue on lower than expected sales in China. Greater China, including Hong Kong and Taiwan, accounts for around 15 percent of Apple’s revenue.
As countries, it’s fair to say that China and Taiwan aren’t exactly BFFs. For evidence of this, look no further than the recently released macOS 10.14.4. Eagle-eyed users in China have noticed that their Mac devices can no longer display the Taiwan flag emoji.
The flag ban can’t even be circumvented by changing the region in your Mac’s System Preferences.
Being an Apple supplier can be a curse as much as a blessing for some Chinese companies.
While earning Apple’s business can give a big boost to a company’s stock, a new study found that Apple’s suppliers saw their share prices drop significantly lower than Apple’s stock did during the recent iPhone sales slump.
Apple suppliers have taken a hit in revenue during early 2019 as a result of falling iPhone shipments. Analysts don’t expect a turnaround anytime soon with Apple’s smartphone still struggling to catch a break in China.
iPhone sales are down, especially in emerging markets. The reason is simple: Apple’s devices cost too darn much. And the solution is equally simple: Apple must make a new budget model. In short, it needs a successor to the iPhone SE to ensure short-term profits as well as long-term viability.
This device has to have a low, low price. Even if that means a phone so bare-bones that most Americans turn up their noses at it.
Chinese online retailers have slashed iPhone prices for the second time this year.
The discounts are an effort to boost sales in an important market, where Apple recently suffered a 20 percent decline year-on-year. The first iPhone price cuts were rolled out in January.
Slowing iPhone sales in China was a major concern for Apple. However, things may be back on the upswing, claims UBS analyst Timothy Arcuri.
According to Arcuri’s latest note to investors, Apple is clearing inventory in the country. This is partially thanks to price reductions. While it would be foolish to suggest that there won’t be more struggles, it seems that the worst could be behind Apple.
Apple has joined forces with Alipay in an effort to boost iPhone sales in China.
iPhone fans can now bag one of the company’s latest handsets with up to two years of interest-free finance. The loan allows customers to swap the costly upfront fee for much more affordable monthly payments. It’s available on purchases of 4,000 yuan (approx. $595) or more.
