4 ms·

It's disappointing they are pulling VPN apps that might help with escaping the GFW. I find it funny how large tech companies such as Google, Facebook, and Apple

by dssu 8y ago

It's disappointing they are pulling VPN apps that might help with escaping the GFW. I find it funny how large tech companies such as Google, Facebook, and Apple - try so hard to adopt a public image promoting western liberal values. However they all end up submitting to political censorship demands for a population of over a billion people. I read earlier in the month even Google has caved in, despite being an example years ago by refusing to participate in censorship But then I know their primary priority is to increase revenue/profits. Can't do that by being blocked out of such a massive market.

shanghaiaway 8y ago
Your primary priority is also to increase revenue.
- cat199 8y ago
  do you actually know this poster? Or is this some sort of pseudo-intellectual libertarian assumption that functions as 'true' by eliminating all variables which disagree with it?
  - dang 8y ago
    Can you please not post ideological battle-style comments to HN? They're not what this site is for. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- dang 8y ago
  Could you please stop posting unsubstantive comments to Hacker News?
avcdsuia 8y ago
FYI they pulled proxy apps but made switching app store region very easy.
- 4ad 8y ago
  What do you mean? Switching the app store region was alway trivial (just click on a different region). What is difficult about switching the region is paying for apps. You need a region-specific payment method.
  - nielsbot 8y ago
    At least in the US you can buy non-US iTunes prepaid cards online to get around this. Maybe that's also a loophole within China?
    - 4ad 8y ago
      Actually, I don't think you can, or rather I can't. I live in Austria, but I want a US iCloud account. I can't, use non-US iTunes gift cards with my US iCloud account. I have to buy US iTunes gift cards, which I have to get on eBay, or buy them when I visit the US. It's a total PITA, as vendors selling these items are super-paranoid and often won't sell to you without some kind of "verification" that takes days/weeks to clear. Btw, if anyone has any other workaround, I would be very grateful. Something like a US pre-paid debit card that permits non-US customers and that is also accepted by Apple. I haven't found one that satisfies both criteria.
      - dewey 8y ago
        I was in the same situation up until a while ago. Then I realized that an US account is a pain if I want to do family sharing on that account with the rest of my family with Austrian accounts, or use local apps that are not available in the US store. My solution is (for work related things that need to be country specific) to use https://www.pcgamesupply.com/ https://www.pcgamesupply.com/ - they sent codes within a few seconds and you can pay with credit card. Very convenient and not as annoying as eBay. There are a lot of these shops though so not sure what’s the problem for you. I can only recommend a local account if you plan on staying there for longer though, the more things you buy the harder it is to convert it into another country later and take your purchases with you. I had to go through that and it was annoying, as afterwards (on your account after the switch) you don’t see your purchase before your switch, but if you buy them you get a message saying “You already bought this one, this will be free” - but you are never sure if you get charged or not as this message comes at the step where you usually get your payment confirmation.
nielsbot 8y ago
Exactly. Apple's like "The App Store is for your protection" but it cuts both ways: It's enabling government control of which software you can install on your device. Unexpected unintended consequences...
krn 8y ago
If a company wants to operate in a certain jurisdiction, it has to respect its laws, whether it agrees with them or not. There is simply no way around it. And you could argue, that Chinese democracy is better off with iOS devices even as they are today, than without them at all.

by dssu 8y ago

shanghaiaway 8y ago

Your primary priority is also to increase revenue.

cat199 8y ago
do you actually know this poster? Or is this some sort of pseudo-intellectual libertarian assumption that functions as 'true' by eliminating all variables which disagree with it?
- dang 8y ago
  Can you please not post ideological battle-style comments to HN? They're not what this site is for. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
dang 8y ago
Could you please stop posting unsubstantive comments to Hacker News?

avcdsuia 8y ago

FYI they pulled proxy apps but made switching app store region very easy.

4ad 8y ago
What do you mean? Switching the app store region was alway trivial (just click on a different region). What is difficult about switching the region is paying for apps. You need a region-specific payment method.
- nielsbot 8y ago
  At least in the US you can buy non-US iTunes prepaid cards online to get around this. Maybe that's also a loophole within China?
  - 4ad 8y ago
    Actually, I don't think you can, or rather I can't. I live in Austria, but I want a US iCloud account. I can't, use non-US iTunes gift cards with my US iCloud account. I have to buy US iTunes gift cards, which I have to get on eBay, or buy them when I visit the US. It's a total PITA, as vendors selling these items are super-paranoid and often won't sell to you without some kind of "verification" that takes days/weeks to clear. Btw, if anyone has any other workaround, I would be very grateful. Something like a US pre-paid debit card that permits non-US customers and that is also accepted by Apple. I haven't found one that satisfies both criteria.
    - dewey 8y ago
      I was in the same situation up until a while ago. Then I realized that an US account is a pain if I want to do family sharing on that account with the rest of my family with Austrian accounts, or use local apps that are not available in the US store. My solution is (for work related things that need to be country specific) to use https://www.pcgamesupply.com/ https://www.pcgamesupply.com/ - they sent codes within a few seconds and you can pay with credit card. Very convenient and not as annoying as eBay. There are a lot of these shops though so not sure what’s the problem for you. I can only recommend a local account if you plan on staying there for longer though, the more things you buy the harder it is to convert it into another country later and take your purchases with you. I had to go through that and it was annoying, as afterwards (on your account after the switch) you don’t see your purchase before your switch, but if you buy them you get a message saying “You already bought this one, this will be free” - but you are never sure if you get charged or not as this message comes at the step where you usually get your payment confirmation.

nielsbot 8y ago

Exactly. Apple's like "The App Store is for your protection" but it cuts both ways: It's enabling government control of which software you can install on your device. Unexpected unintended consequences...

krn 8y ago

If a company wants to operate in a certain jurisdiction, it has to respect its laws, whether it agrees with them or not. There is simply no way around it. And you could argue, that Chinese democracy is better off with iOS devices even as they are today, than without them at all.