- // Update 1 (04/09/2020 6:48 pm) PUBG Mobile has been removed by Google and Apple
In yet another move cracking down on Chinese apps in India, the government has today decided to ban another 118 apps of Chinese origin. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has put out a release listing all the apps that are now banned in India.
The biggest name here is obviously PUBG Mobile which was excluded from the ban when the government first banned 59 Chinese apps a couple of months ago. This time around however, PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile Lite are both on the list.
As of this writing, I’m still able to launch PUBG Mobile on my iPhone, and matchmaking is working properly as well. However, if the last wave of app bans is anything to go by, the app will likely be removed from the Play Store and the App Store very soon and will stop working as well.
Government blocks 118 mobile apps which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, Defence of India, Security of State and Public Order: Govt of India
PUBG MOBILE Nordic Map: Livik, PUBG MOBILE LITE, WeChat Work & WeChat reading are among the banned mobile apps. pic.twitter.com/VWrg3WUnO8
— ANI (@ANI) September 2, 2020
The reasons given behind banning these additional 118 apps is similar to what it was back when TikTok was banned along with other apps such as SHEIN and WeChat. The government claims that the apps are “prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, Defence of India, Security of State and Public Order: Govt of India”
Other major apps included in the list are Rise of Kingdoms, Art of Conquest, Arena of Valor among others.
Update 1 (04/09/2020 6:48 pm)
Following the ban on PUBG Mobile, PUBG Mobile Lite, and 116 other apps, both Google and Apple have removed the battle royale title from their app stores.
Searching for PUBG Mobile now no longer shows the app either on the Play Store or the App Store. However, if you have the game installed on your phone you will still be able to see its listing on the stores.
That said, the game is still working as of this writing, and actually has an “Indian Instagram Followers Milestone” event running, which is just ironic at this point.
