Apple CEO Tim Cook to Visit China, Meet Government Officials This Month

[MacRumors]

Apple CEO Tim Cook will visit Beijing later in May to meet with high-level government officials as the company looks to counter a series of recent setbacks in the country (via Reuters).

According to sources familiar with the matter, Cook plans to meet senior government and Communist Party leaders to discuss a range of issues, including weakening iPhone sales and the company's loss of control of its smartphone trademark in China, now its second biggest market.

The news comes after Apple's earning call last month revealed sales fell 26 percent in greater China in the second quarter of 2016. Following the earning's call, billionaire Carl Icahn, who has been buying large amounts of Apple stock over the past three years, sold his stake in the company and expressed worries over China's attitude towards Apple.

As part of his visit, Cook will also meet with officials from the Communist Party's propaganda wing, in order to address concerns after Apple fell foul of a state campaign to control online content and enforce strict localization of data storage, according to the Reuters source.

Last month, Apple's iTunes Movies and iBooks stores were reportedly forced offline in the country by the Chinese State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television. One Hong Kong-based news outlet linked the store closures to the release of controversial independent movie Ten Years, which won best picture prize at April's Hong Kong Film Awards, despite being banned in China. The dystopian film imagines Hong Kong in 2025 with language police, mini Red Guards, radical protest and social alienation rife. News of the store closures broke shortly before the movie became available on iTunes in Hong Kong.

Apple is one of eight companies that China has targeted for being "too deeply established in the country's core industries" according to The New York Times. Other companies on China's list include IBM, Qualcomm and Microsoft.

Last November, when asked whether Apple had run into censorship problems in China, Eddy Cue said that the company had a "great working relationship" with China and that the launch of Apple Music and the iTunes Movies and iBooks stores showed that Apple knew how to work in the country.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Article Link: Apple CEO Tim Cook to Visit China, Meet Government Officials This Month

 

[Crosscreek]

When you have such an investment in a country like this your at their mercy. They don't like secret white rooms either.

 

[H2SO4]

He needs to take a bigger bribe than last time.

 

[Sirious]

"We need those headphone jacks after all!"

 

[Shirasaki]

"Communist party is the cancer of world".

China now holds resources, especially rare earth materials. Or, when those are depleted, China will then beg for other countries mercy for trade and business?

 

[H2SO4]

"Communist party is the cancer of world".

China now holds resources, especially rare earth materials. Or, when those are depleted, China will then beg for other countries mercy for trade and business?

Can’t see how that’s any worse than western countries pillaging third world countries?

 

[samcraig]

Tim: "How do we get your citizens to buy more iPhones?!"

 

[heehee]

It's easy to fix, bring suit cases full of yuan with him in the private jet.

 

[s2mikey]

Tim: "How do we get your citizens to buy more iPhones?!"

Same way they get their citizens to do everything else they want: With threats and force.

 

[thermodynamic]

When you have such an investment in a country like this your at their mercy. They don't like secret white rooms either.

Well, Apple chose to exploit China, give them source code, etc... Nobody forced Apple with a gun or requirements in a job ad. China will probably start to want more out of Apple at some point, if all the talk about how bad communism is ends up being actually real. Maybe that's why Cook's body language on that crazy stock show with Kramer revealed a bit of concern (for his company if not just himself since he gets to be responsible for his company?) The Baby Boomers, especially those that fought in Vietnam, might not like these folks, but I'm sure Millennials will welcome him back. I'm not a Boomer, so...


[doublepost=1462536252][/doublepost]

Same way they get their citizens to do everything else they want: With threats and force.

Not advertising that emotionally manipulates in lieu of a genuine need?

Cracked summed it up deftly:
http://www.cracked.com/video_18522_why-apple-clearly-thinks-youre-stupid.html
[doublepost=1462536637][/doublepost]

"Communist party is the cancer of world".

China now holds resources, especially rare earth materials. Or, when those are depleted, China will then beg for other countries mercy for trade and business?

Look up what Ballmer and other Microsoft officials said 15+ years ago about Linux being a cancer and/or communism. Then find more recent articles saying how they all looooove open source. Quite an interesting change, a real-life market paradigm reason is most likely because Apple (and Google) managed to find a way to take other peoples' volunteered work and make walled gardens to cash in on. Co-opting communism, in a way...

 

[Chupa Chupa]

TC really is a fantastic outspoken ambassador for the RFK Center for Justice. No wonder they put him on the board. First donating his time to earn it $400K, and now on to China to protest... ooooh... never mind.

 

[thermodynamic]

Can’t see how that’s any worse than western countries pillaging third world countries?

When does "third world" become first world, and when does "first world" become "second world", etc? Since these "developing" countries can do eeeeeeeeeeeeeverything for better, they've been first world for some time now, while the erstwhile first world countries have slid backwards. Maybe we'll get source code and free opportunities in the future instead of paying through the teeth for expensive college that the same CEOs say have not made Americans adequately trained for the jobs?
[doublepost=1462536828][/doublepost]

TC really is a fantastic outspoken ambassador for the RFK Center for Justice. No wonder they put him on the board. First donating his time to earn it $400K, and now on to China to protest... ooooh... never mind.

If he is protesting. Cook knows what he wants to talk about. What China wants to talk about could be any number of things, including what he wants to talk about or not. Can't blame them. It depends on your point of view and I try to see many at one point or another. The resultant anxiety disorder probably isn't worth it, so I'll side with whomever gets elected in November.

 

[Zirel]

"Communist party is the cancer of world".

China now holds resources, especially rare earth materials. Or, when those are depleted, China will then beg for other countries mercy for trade and business?

Do Apple products need those rare earth materials?

Can't they do without them?

 

[H2SO4]

When does "third world" become first world, and when does "first world" become "second world", etc? Since these "developing" countries can do eeeeeeeeeeeeeverything for better, they've been first world for some time now, while the erstwhile first world countries have slid backwards. Maybe we'll get source code and free opportunities in the future instead of paying through the teeth for expensive college that the same CEOs say have not made Americans adequately trained for the jobs?
[doublepost=1462536828][/doublepost]

If he is protesting. Cook knows what he wants to talk about. What China wants to talk about could be any number of things, including what he wants to talk about or not. Can't blame them. It depends on your point of view and I try to see many at one point or another. The resultant anxiety disorder probably isn't worth it, so I'll side with whomever gets elected in November.

As to the first point, even thought we’ve never met I think we’ve probably got quite close definitions of what constitutes a first world country.
As to your second. If Tim had a problem with China that money couldn’t solve he’d be outspoken and public about it like he has with many other things. He knows where his bread is buttered.

 

[vooke]

Apple need China more than China needs Apple. So Tc has gone to kiss a**

 

[Keniutek]

Many butts to kiss. Poor Tim...

 

[Pilgrim1099]

Apple need China more than China needs Apple. So Tc has gone to kiss a**

That's EXACTLY what's he's doing. More a$$ kissing out of desperation. I suspect within a few months or close to Fall something is going to happen where his job may be in jeopardy. And he should take Williams with him as he goes out the window.

 

[Deuce on the Clock]

Why would a company that claims to be for diversity and human rights want to go to a country which violates human rights? Doesnt making a deal with them to sell more iPhones contradict Apples stance on the matter?

 

[groovyd]

if you can't outdrink them and speak their language they will never respect you

 

[imwoblin]

I'd love to be the fly on the wall for this meeting. We all know that China is groomed to be Apple's largest market, and a certain amount of give and take is inevitable. Maybe TC 's first concession will be to allow China Mobile to slap their name on the iPhone. Let's hope not...

 

[DominikHoffmann]

Totalitarianism at work! Hey, all you Bernistas out there, this is the kind of power you would want your guy to be able to wield, right? Oh, and, of course, it will be for the benefit of the people…

 

[SteveJobs2.0]

This time it will be Tim Cooking saying: "You buy, you buy, good price for you!"

 

[Sasparilla]

When you have such an investment in a country like this your at their mercy. They don't like secret white rooms either.

True and they don't like not having coded in back doors. Let them come in to the Chinese market and become established, then close off a big chunk of their business (iTunes & something else if memory serves) to show them who has control here and meet to make demands (i.e. coded in back door for all products sold) or tell them we'll close the market off to their hardware & they can watch 30% of their revenue die off (at which point the CEO would get fired & replaced by someone who will do that to get the 30% revenue boost back).

It's hard to see a scenario where the govts don't get the back doors (if they don't have them already) eventually...they just have too much control of access to markets. Wish Apple would open source (not free) their OS's and firmware so we can prevent that (seems inevitable otherwise) eventuality.

 

[2457282]

I have said this before, but to reiterate, Apple has a significant China problem. On the one hand, almost everything Apple makes is made in China. So Apple has to pay a lot of money to the Chinese companies. The money mostly comes from other countries that buy the products. This is the problem -- currency conversion and import/export taxes. Now if Apple could sell a boatload of stuff to the Chinese, the problem would be resolved to some degree. Hence the trips to China IMO.

Another option is to move some of the manufacturing to other countries. Right now, Brazil would be a good option. This would allow both more negotiating power and better currency management by Apple. Until then it's a game of kissing up to the Chinese.

 

[MH01]

TC . Tell them how your making products to change the world ...... See if they buy it and please please give them a spill on privacy !!

Rinse and repeat