China Issues Ban On iPad, MacBook Pro, And Other Apple Products For Government Use
China seems to be on a mission to isolate itself from the world, at least in terms of technology. After banning Windows 8 on government PCs and raiding several of Microsoft's offices in China as part of an anti-trust investigation, Chinese officials have now prohibited to purchase of several Apple products for government use.
Reportedly, the list of banned Apple products include the iPad, iPad Mini, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and half a dozen other items, all of which were left off of a final government procurement list distributed in July. Interestingly, they appeared on the same list in draft form just a month ago. It's no surprise really, when you consider the Chinese state media already declared the iPhone a "threat to national security."
China is hypersensitive to hacking and cyberspying, especially as it pertains to the U.S. after former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden shed light on programs like PRISM. Product bans are being issued fast and furious, including both hardware and software, even of the antivirus kind (Symantec and Kaspersky are both recent targets of China's ire).
This is a potentially big hit to Apple, which generated around 16 percent of its $37.4 billion in revenue last quarter from China. Apple saw its iPad sales jump 51 percent and Mac sales boosted 39 percent in China.
Reportedly, the list of banned Apple products include the iPad, iPad Mini, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and half a dozen other items, all of which were left off of a final government procurement list distributed in July. Interestingly, they appeared on the same list in draft form just a month ago. It's no surprise really, when you consider the Chinese state media already declared the iPhone a "threat to national security."
China is hypersensitive to hacking and cyberspying, especially as it pertains to the U.S. after former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden shed light on programs like PRISM. Product bans are being issued fast and furious, including both hardware and software, even of the antivirus kind (Symantec and Kaspersky are both recent targets of China's ire).
This is a potentially big hit to Apple, which generated around 16 percent of its $37.4 billion in revenue last quarter from China. Apple saw its iPad sales jump 51 percent and Mac sales boosted 39 percent in China.
