“With Apple selling a record 10 million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus over its opening weekend, it’s safe to say the handsets are continuing to sell well for the Cupertino-based company. However, those sales will reportedly not continue in Russia starting next year, as both the iPhone and iPad will be banned in the Motherland.”
“Reported by GSMDome, Russian authorities will reportedly ban the iPhone and iPad due to worries over Apple’s iCloud service,” Pelegrin reports. “The justification is that data saved in iCloud is not stored in local servers. The servers Apple employ for iCloud are based in the United States, not in Russia.”
“Such a ban could be very hard to impose on iPhones already in use in Russia, so the ban could probably be more of an ISP ban, which would forbid access to iCloud,” Pelegrin reports. “Regardless, the ban will reportedly begin on January 1, 2015.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Putin. Angling for an Apple data center on Russian soil.
Could Apple comply by doing what they do in China: Storing user data on servers located in Russia with local carriers (or at Edward Snowden’s house)?
Related article:
Apple starts storing user data on servers in China for first time – August 15, 2014
I guess no one in Russia thinks Jennifer Lawrence is that hot.
Putin is not only bringing back the ‘Cold War’ but with banning Apple’s iPad and iPhone, he’ll be bringing back the “Defection”!!!
Not yet; this report is just a rumour. No one is going to ban iPhone/iPad/iCloud in Russia.
Ha, Apple will use their Chinese data storage for Russian iCloud users.
“You see moose and squirrel go by?” – Rootin’ Tootin’, Shirtless Selfie Shootin’, Jackboot Scootin’, Bad Vlad Putin.
(sung to the tune of “Barefootin’.”)
The real reason: Tim Cook coming out as gay
Basically this. I bet Apple will offer to build a data center on Russian soil, and they’ll come up with another excuse. Or just come out and outright admit that it’s because of Tim Cook.
My first thought too. I had the pleasure of spending a week with 10 visiting Russians about 10 years ago. They were mostly doctors and entrepreneurs. We had a great time visiting hospitals (like the nuclear medicine center at Loma Linda), stores (one of the guys wanted a pair cowboy boots; that was fun because I didn’t have the translator with me), and taking them to various local businesses. They were so gregarious and excited. It was a blast for all of us. I am so sorry to see Putin rebuilding the Iron Curtain around Russia. Very disappointing.
So are they planning on also banning iPods, Macs, Apple TVs, etc? Doubtful! If iCloud is the enemy, nearly everything Apple makes connects to iCloud in some way so why the half measure. My thinking is that this is all just a knee jerk response to Tim’s coming out as gay.
No, it’s Apple’s encryption of data and Apple’s own inability to access it, which certainly prevents Russian “Security” forces from accessing it.
No, this rumour pre-dates Cook’s statement. The source article is weeks behind the time this rumour has appeared.
Russian data on iCloud is so gay!
Hmmmm… if so, then it sounds like a booming business fir iPhone 6 in Russia on the black market!
Geez, if only there was a Black Market in Russia… 😉
Russia only enforces my need to deny that some of my ancestors are from that scumbag country.
Is there anywhere on the planet that hasn’t been a scumbag country for a substantial part of its history?
That’s a great question. The Global Peace Index ranks the following countries as the most peaceful for 2014 (the top 10 so to speak):
Iceland, Denmark, Austria, New Zealand, Switzerland, Finland, Canada, Japan, Belgium, and Norway.
That’s only part of the answer to your question though. I think one would have to look over the entire history of a country, take the time it was at war (on a yearly basis) and divide it by the number of years it existed one would get an interesting % to compare.
No I’m not going to do it, but someone should.
Dadblasted commie pinkos.
I think you are mistaken. Calling Putin’s supporters “commies and pinkos” is simply wrong. They resemble fascists and rightwing nuts if anything.
More Apple products for the rest of the world.
Let Russia be all Android, they deserve each other.
A difference that won’t make a difference. Apple will still encrypt everything, so Russia won’t be getting any user data. If he just wants a payout for his cronies that still might not happen. Apple could still use their own employees. Heck it would be a great incentive to boost performance. Do better, or be sent to the Russian front.
Hmm, I guess that makes Putin the new Col. Klink…
There is no goal to “get data”. Unlike USA with its NSA, Russia does not build giant data centres where it could store and process, all of the spying goes on the fly and gets collected only in focused way.
So – what if Apple withholds payments to russian apps developers? Or refuses to authorize them?
No loss. No loss at all. Only Russia loses. Hahaha.
Now this is going to be a good show. I’m sure popcorn sales will be going through the roof.
AAPL should ship as much product as humanly possible to Russia before the cut off.
First Russia banned Tim Cook from entering Russia because of their hatred of all LGBT. Then the demolished the monument to Steve Jobs in Russia. Now they’re banning all mobile Apple products because of “the cloud”. Hate based reactions from Russian Communist Regime.
Boycott ALL products from Russia!
What in hell does Russia manufacture that any other country wants? (Pumping crude from the ground does not count.)
Oil and natural gas. And vodka.
Matryoshka dolls.
One point, Tim Cook hasn’t been banned from Russia.
I have no idea why he’d ever want to go there though.
Unbelievable..
BS reason. The real truth is Apple is making it incredibly difficult, if not impossible, for Russian “Security” forces to hack into your iPhone or account, or unlock your iPhone and take data off of it. This has nothing to do with where Apple’s iCloud servers are located (except that Russian authorities would have to go to a U.S. court to get a search warrant rather than just show up with guns to a Russian location).
Russia does produce some of the world’s finest hockey players, and hookers, so let’s figure this out.
In America, you watch data, in Soviet Russia data watch you!
Hahahahaha! In America they collect as much data as possible on you from wherever they can, without authority from anyone!
This is called saber rattling pure and simple. Both sides do it.
plizzz