Apple had to remove some dating apps from its China App Store due to government regulations.
Apple pressured to remove Blued and Finka from the App Store.
Although China removed homosexuality from its list of crimes in the 1990s, it does not recognize same-sex marriage. The Chinese Communist Party has been increasing its restrictions on the LGBTQ+ community, resulting in the closure of several advocacy organizations. Social media content and accounts related to LGBTQ+ topics have been subjected to censorship.
In response to a request for information, Apple stated via email that they adhere to local laws. Apple said that, following a mandate from China's Cyberspace Administration, they have taken down two apps from the Chinese version of the App Store. Apple also noted that the apps had been unavailable outside of China for a while. The company added that Finka's developer chose to remove the app from storefronts outside of China earlier in the year, and Blued was exclusively available in China.
The majority of international LGBTQ+ dating apps have already been eliminated in China. Grindr, for instance, was removed from the Chinese App Store in 2022. There had been indications that changes were coming for Blued. In July, Blued suspended new account registrations without explanation. Chinese users who wanted a Blued account were paying up to $20 for existing accounts that month. By August, new registrations were being accepted again.
In 2020, Blued reported over 49 million registered users and more than 6 million active monthly users. That year, Blued's parent company, BlueCity, announced its acquisition of its primary competitor, Finka, for around $33 million. BlueCity, which became a public company in China in 2020, was delisted two years later and acquired by Newborn Town, a social media firm based in Hong Kong.
Currently, it's unclear if the removal of Blued and Finka is a short-term action or a permanent one. Some apps that have been removed in the past have been reinstated on app storefronts after the Cyberspace Administration of China's requests were fulfilled.
In 2024, the international version of Blued was rebranded as HeeSay, which gained popularity in countries such as India, Pakistan, and the Philippines. HeeSay is still available in app stores in some countries, including the U.S., where it can be downloaded from both the App Store and the Google Play Store.