Apple, 2024 App Store Transparency Report reveals that a total of 17,309 applications worldwide have been removed from the App Store based on requests from governments. Turkey ranked high on this list.
TURKEY RANKS AS THE 7th COUNTRY WITH MOST OBJECTIONS
According to the report, 8 apps were removed from the App Store in Turkey due to government requests, placing the country 9th globally in this regard. Additionally, with 964 appeals from developers, Turkey became the 7th country with the highest number of objections to app removals. As a result of these objections, 16 applications were reinstated in Turkey, moving the country to 5th place in restored app numbers.
Two different official sources made the removal requests:
Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK): 7 applications
- The report did not mention the law or article on which BTK’s requests were based. They were likely based on general administrative decisions or content regulations.
Istanbul Anatolia 1st Intellectual and Industrial Rights Court: 1 application
- This request was directly conveyed by a court order and may be based on copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property issues.
ONLY LOCAL APPLICATIONS ARE REMOVED
Apple stated that “Applications are only closed within the jurisdiction of the requesting country and remain accessible in other regions,” emphasizing that apps are removed only within the jurisdiction of the requesting country, allowing access in other regions.
The names, contents, and legal basis of the removed applications were not detailed in the report.
16 APPS REINSTATED AFTER OBJECTIONS
Turkey had a total of 964 objections, leading to the restoration of 16 applications. With this, Turkey entered the top 5 countries globally in terms of reinstatements.
Apple mentioned that the majority of removals were due to illegal content or fraud, and most developer appeals were rejected.
The report also stated that 146,747 developer accounts were terminated globally, along with the deletion of over 128 million customer accounts and prevention of more than $2 billion in fraud. However, no specific data related to Turkey was shared in these categories.
