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Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

reuters.com

201–210 of 673 posts

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#201

It is important to note, that in Apple's case the problem is made worse by the fact that on iOS there are no ways to install the app bypassing the appstore. That makes Apple's cooperation with dictators and authocrats so much worse for their users. You know, the people Apple claims to care about and 'protect'.

somebody think about the children!

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#202
post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even Navalny and his supporters are not calling for foreign companies to all pull out of Russia. What makes you think you know better what is good for the Russian people and the opposition groups than Russians and the opposition groups themselves? How many of Russia's Apple employees think Apple is "participating in dictatorship" by employing them? How many Russian citizens, including the political opposition, do you…

The actual problem is not that Apple removed the app. It's that there is no other way to install the app if Apple removes it from their store.

The problem is that everyone is now talking about the app and the prisoner. Good luck putting the genie back in the bottle.

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#203

Reuters doesn't report this, but the government officials threatened the companies (Apple and Google) with jail time for their employees yesterday. After that the companies finally conceded. There's a short video fragment from the meeting of the government officials and the companies representatives. It's worth watching, especially if you come from a democratic nation. Letting your Russian employees be persecuted don…

Arbitrary imprisoning or harming the employees of Google or Apple would likely result in many other western IT firms closing their offices and leaving, that would be a very stupid thing to do for the Russian government. So I don’t think such threats could have been real (but I guess you can’t really count on authoritarian regimes not doing something completely irrational).

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#204
post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not clear what does the app do? What is protest voting and how do you coordinate it ?

It's voting for the candidate most likely to win against the main party's candidates. The app's purpose is to concentrate protest voters on one candidate without spreading them over all of them.

Could the same thing be accomplished with rank choice voting?

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#205
post #201

It is important to note, that in Apple's case the problem is made worse by the fact that on iOS there are no ways to install the app bypassing the appstore. That makes Apple's cooperation with dictators and authocrats so much worse for their users. You know, the people Apple claims to care about and 'protect'.

somebody think about the children!

Yes! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Think_of_the_children

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#206
post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Very sad when not even the massively rich will bother to do the right thing. The issue is Google and Apple isn't owned by one massively rich person. They are owned by tens of thousands of shareholders, many extremely wealthy but most small, including both individual investors but also pension funds and hedge funds, and the CEO & Board are legally obligated to act in their fiduciary interest.

> CEO & Board are legally obligated to act in their fiduciary interest. Short or long term? Because shitting on democracy for money is potentially very damaging for brands in the long term, the market and especially future comptetitors will remember it.

Is it? I’d love to believe you, but I doubt it’s the case. Almost every public company that had something to lose would act the same way under these circumstances..

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#207

Reuters doesn't report this, but the government officials threatened the companies (Apple and Google) with jail time for their employees yesterday. After that the companies finally conceded. There's a short video fragment from the meeting of the government officials and the companies representatives. It's worth watching, especially if you come from a democratic nation. Letting your Russian employees be persecuted don…

Care to provide a source for this?

>Google removed the app in Russia under pressure after officials threatened to imprison its local employees, a person close to the company said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-09-16/russia-ta...

>Google removed the app Friday morning after the Russian authorities issued a direct threat of criminal prosecution against the company’s staff in the country, naming specific individuals, according to a person familiar with the company’s decision.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/17/world/europe/russia-naval...

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#208
post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Two different things; removing something from everyone versus blocking something from specific userbase.

If you read it again, you will find it is the same thing.

Not really. It is totally different policy. Somebody asking removing content from the whole world, because of their limited local legalization versus just not showing it for this limited area. From the perspective of some users, it might be the same result. However, the content is still there and can be accessed from the different route.

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#209

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Usually, we would sanction countries that did this. Maybe time to sanction companies? Otherwise, why do anyone expect them to do anything other than what is the most profitable? Its even illegal not to. Sanction for what exactly? Sanctions against nations don't work. USA has been sanctioning Cuba, Iran for half a century, no regime change whatsoever, it only hurt the population in these countries. USA are sanctioni…

I agree with you that sanctions against countries don't work. But then the next logical step is to propose the action that actually works: sanctions against individuals. Perhaps that's what should be done - sanctions against individual decision-makers at Google and Apple?..

That would make the US more of a pariah than it already is. Already most of the west only follow sanctions imposed by the US screaming and kicking unless it plays into their own agenda.

Re: Google, Apple remove Navalny app from stores as Russian elections begin

#210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pull out of the countries then. Participating in dictatorship is barely better than refusing to do so if that dictatorship will falsely imprison your employees.

I'm no fan of political power in Russia (my home country) or anywhere else in the world, but come on with this double-standard bullshit. Every country does exactly the same thing. Just look at how much suppression of "alternative voices" happens in real time all over the world and what apps were banned, accounts closed etc. Jan 6 was painted as bad as 9/11, ffs. It may be staged differently so it's not the "governmen…

Agreed. Navalny’s behavior is seen by many as “election meddling” backed by a hostile foreign power. Sound familiar?
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