Apple and Russia are no longer doing business via the App Store and some of its other services.
Per MacRumors, as of April 1st, payment processing is no longer available for purchases made across the App Store and other Apple services in Russia, according to Apple.
The closure of services was confirmed by a support document that highlighted that new purchases, in-app purchases, and subscription renewals are no longer available in Russia unless a user already has funds in their Apple Account balance, which can continue to be used.
This change affects the following services and items:
- Apple Arcade
- Apple Fitness+
- Apple Music
- Apple Podcasts subscriptions
- Apple One
- App Store purchases and subscriptions
- Apple TV purchases and subscriptions
- iTunes Store purchases
- iCloud+
- Ringtone & Tone purchases
Apple has stated that apps and content that users had previously purchased will remain available, and that all iCloud data will remain accessible after an iCloud+ subscription ends.
Apple is said to have taken this action in response to an order from the Russian government, which allegedly hopes that the lost services revenue from Russian users will pressure the company to add some popular Russian apps back to the App Store. These apps were removed due to sanctions that arose from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The order would presumably end if Apple were to make those apps available again.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
Via MacRumors and support.apple.com
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