Apple is blocking Telegram updates worldwide says CEO

Even after a Russian court ruled that the app should be blocked in Russian territories, Telegram refused to hand over encryption keys that would give Russian officials access to user data.

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has revealed that Apple hasn't approved a Telegram update in any country since Russian authorities started piling the pressure on.

According to Durov, the problem began when Russian Federation ordered Apple to remove Telegram from the App Store. We believe we did the only possible thing, preserving the right of our users to privacy in a troubled country.

Durov also claims the lack of app updates mean Telegram has also "been unable to fully comply with GDPR" before the May 25th deadline.

On Friday, the GDPR user data and privacy protection law went into effect in Europe, which is why your email inbox was spammed by all the online services you're subscribed to.

"Sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience".

The situation highlights the messy gatekeeper role Apple plays with its App Store acting as the main way people can download apps, along with Google's Play store. The new effort won't look like iAds, which was open to selling goods and services through ad banners in apps, and instead continue to push ads for apps sold on the App Store. Ars has reached out to Apple for further comment.

"We sent them [Apple] a legally binding letter and are awaiting their legally binding reply".

But despite the attention, it is unclear how this might have translated to usage and app installs. Downloads as tracked by AppAnnie, in fact, seem to point to a slight dip in downloads in Russian Federation after the RKN blocks started in April, although those numbers only count App Store downloads.

Shortly after, Russian Federation also blocked a number of IP addresses from Amazon and Google.

Apple has run into similar criticism in China, after the company removed virtual private networks, apps that allowed users to avoid the country's online censorship, from its App Store in China. Logically, it seems that the Play Store and others might also feel the squeeze, too.