Rumor: China Unicom Blocks App Store for Jailbroken iPhones
mydrivers.com, 2/17/11
Recent reports claim that China Unicom (NYSE: CHU; 0762.HK; 600050.SH) has begun blocking WCDMA mobile internet connections to Cydia, an app store for jailbroken iPhones. When Unicom iPhone users open the Cydia homepage, they are automatically redirected to the mobile version of the China Unicom homepage instead. While it is unclear why the operator would block Cydia, many suspect that it is the result of pressure from Apple.
Cydia is a package management application allowing users of jailbroken iPhones to install third-party software through its independent app store, as well as system patches and pirated copies of applications available through Apple's App Store.
Editor's Note: Sina News tested Cydia on several Beijing Unicom iPhones and found that it opened as normal, with no signs of an automatic redirect to the China Unicom homepage as had been reported. It is unclear whether or not the Cydia blocks might be independently set by different provincial subsidiaries of the operator.
Keywords: mobile application mobile data China Unicom iPhone wireless app store Apple WCDMA 0762.HK 600050.SH CHU handset smartphone 3G piracy