Apple removes major gay dating apps in China as government cyber ‘clean-up’ escalates

Apple has removed two popular Chinese gay dating apps, Blued and Finka, from its China App Store following orders from the country’s main internet regulator and censorship authority.

Amid a nationwide cyber “clean-up” campaign announced by China’s Cyberspace Administration in 2021, the crackdown on gay dating apps issued by the same body marks the latest step in reducing LGBTQ+ content online.

In a statement to Wired, an Apple spokesperson said the company’s policy is to “follow the laws of the countries where it operates”.

“We have removed these two apps from the China storefront only” – Apple removing Blued and Finka from China’s Apple Store

“We follow the laws in the countries where we operate. Based on an order from the Cyberspace Administration of China, we have removed these two apps from the China storefront only,” the statement continued.

Apple added: “Earlier this year, the developer of Finka elected to remove the app from storefronts outside of China, and Blued was available only in China,” highlighting the broader move to restrict gay dating apps across the globe.

A “lite” version of Blued is still available on Chinese app stores (e.g., Huawei’s AppGallery). Other similar apps like Jicco and Jack’d remain available.

Is Grindr available in to purchase from the App Store in China?

Grindr was removed from China’s App Store in 2022, shortly after the Cyberspace Administration of China began classifying a wide range of LGBTQ+ online content as illegal and inappropriate.

In 2023, new regulations required all apps serving Chinese users to register for licenses, causing many foreign apps to be removed.

China operates a tight independent regulated version of Apple’s App Store, meaning social media apps such as Instagram and WhatsApp are not available in the country.

Homosexuality was decriminalised in 1997, but same-sex marriage is still not legal.