Apple and the Chinese governmentmay have been at oddslately over AppleCare warranty, but the iPhone maker has since gone to great lengths in order to appease to local authorities and ensure that it is treating the Chinese customer with respect.
Apple’s latest move involves pledging cash donations to the victims of the earthquake-stricken areas of China and committing to donating products to several schools in the affected areas. Furthermore, Apple is prominently advertising the donations effort on its Chinese homepage…
Apple’s statement reads (via China’s tech portal,Sina):
In this difficult time, our hearts are with the victims of the Sichuan earthquake closely linked in addition to the form of cash donations to help the affected people to tide over their difficulties, we are also committed to the new Apple device as part of the disaster area schools, Apple employees at any time in the local stand-by to help.
Apple’s homepage in China also offers“our deepest condolences to those who were taken away by the Sichuan Yaan earthquake,”while acknowledging bravery of the rescuers.
“May those who have passed away rest in peace, and may the survivors stay strong,”the statement reads.
In a series of moves that culminated with aCEO apologyand dispatching Tim Cook’s right-hand man todeal with the PR crisis, Apple last weekkicked an appout of the China App Store over containing material critical of the government.
The company is also inviting developers to localize their apps for more language markets, including for Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese. Also new: theChinese Support Communitiesforum where local users can submit questions and provide answers written in their local language.
Despite these strides, Apple isn’t off the hook in China yet as authorities appear to have turned a blind eye on a local application store whichcarries pirated iOS apps.
Worse, the state-run People’s Daily newspaper asserts that Apple along with several other companies has now become the target in a probe over alleged pornography content on the App Store.
