Apple has removed VKontakte from App Store

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Apple has removed VKontakte from App Store

According to a statement from VK, the company behind the platform, Apple Inc AAPL has removed VKontakte, a popular social networking application in Russia.

What Happened: The statement, first reported on The Verge, said that some VK applications were blocked by Apple and were not available to download and update on the App Store.

The statement said that VK applications already installed on phones continued to work.

Russia s Ministry of Digital Affairs said it was looking into Apple's reasons for deleting VK applications and developer accounts.

On Android, applications for VK are reported to be available on Alphabet Inc's GOOGL GOOG Google Play Store.

Apple and VK didn't respond immediately to Benzinga's request for comment.

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Statista data shows that VKontakte was the most popular social media platform in Russia as of June 2022. The platform has a 67 million-strong user base.

It was recently reported that the newly launched iPhone 14 will be available in Russia despite the Tim Cook-led company exit from the country thanks to a parallel imports scheme.

Russia labeled VK rival Meta Platforms Inc META as an extremist organization in March 2022, reported Reuters.

Meta operates Facebook and Instagram, both of which were banned in Russia in the wake of the invasion of neighboring Ukraine.

According to Benzinga Pro, Apple shares closed on Tuesday at $151.76, a 0.7% increase from the previous session.