Chinese apps Weibo & Baidu Search to be taken down from app stores post ban by govt

Following the ban on Chinese apps, it has now been reported that two of its biggest apps - Baidu Search and Weibo - are to be taken off Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. The apps have already been blocked by the Indian government. The Narendra Modi-led administration had banned 59 Chinese mobile apps first and then 47 others on July 27. 

Most apps in this second list of 47 include clones, or lite versions, of some of the apps that were a part of the 59 banned like TikTok Lite, Shareit Lite, CamScanner HD, BioLive Lite, Likee Lite, etc.

READ | Government Considering A Ban On PUBG In India? Here's What We Know So Far

Sources have also reported that the government may soon ban PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) in India. PUBG is one of the most popular smartphone mobile games in India and many other countries. In India alone, the app boasts of over 175 million downloads. The app has also been subject to heavy criticism several times in the past but for a different reason.

READ | Google Issues First Response On India's 59 Chinese-origin App-ban; 'developers Notified'

China reacts to India's 'Digital Strike'

Reacting to India's ban of the Chinese apps at a Chinese Foreign Ministry briefing, spokesman Zhao Lijian said, China is strongly concerned about the relevant notice issued by the Indian side. We are checking and verifying the situation. "I want to stress that the Chinese government always asks the Chinese businesses to abide by international rules, local laws and regulations in their business cooperation with foreign countries," he said.

READ | India Bans 47 More Apps; Most Are Clones Of 59 Earlier-banned Chinese-origin Apps

Following India's move, other countries like Australia and the US are also planning to ban Chinese apps because of the security threat they possess. Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had said that India's surprise move to ban 59 Chinese apps was a "digital strike." "We banned Chinese apps to protect data of countrymen; it was a digital strike," Prasad said at a BJP rally in West Bengal, news agency PTI reported.