Apple says developers have earned $17 bln from China App Store

World
Europe

Apple’s chief executive Tim Cook said developers using its platform in China number 1.8 million and have earned a total 112 billion yuan (16.93 billion US dollars), representing roughly a quarter of total global App Store earnings.

Cook shared the data on Sunday during a speech at China’s top public cyber policy forum, organized by the Cybersecurity Administration of China (CAC), which oversees Internet regulation including censorship.

Earlier this year, Apple said that developers had earned roughly 70 billion US dollars in total revenue through the store.

Apple counts China as its third-largest region by sales but it has lost market share in recent years as high-end handsets from local rivals continue to gain traction. The firm is hoping to regain momentum following the release of its iPhone 8 and iPhone X models which shipped in November.

Apple CEO Tim Cook/Reuters Photo

The US tech giant said earlier it had moved its Chinese cloud data onto the servers of a local partner in southwest China's Guizhou Province.

Cook has come to China several times this year, including an October visit where he was among executives that met with President Xi Jinping, who also had prepared remarks to read at the conference on Sunday.

Cook’s attendance is conspicuous at the conference, marking the first high-level executive to attend in the event’s four-year history. Others included Google chief executive Sundar Pichai, who is also attending the conference for the first time.

Source(s): Reuters