China recently announced that all government employees are banned from using iPhones and any other foreign technology as it is laser-focused on switching to local alternatives in an attempt to boost its regional security. Additionally, China is aiming to replace all of the company’s Macs with domestic products within government and state-owned companies by 2024, but the transition looks to be a difficult one as demand for Apple’s computers continues to grow in the country.
Despite a slump in overall Mac sales, demand for Apple’s machines has increased in China, recording a 17 percent shipments increase in Q2
The plan to replace Apple’s Macs for government employees had already commenced last year, according to Bloomberg. The exact progress on this transition has not been reported about, but according to Apple’s second-quarter shipment data from Canalys, it looks as if the entire process could take significantly longer than previously estimated. This is because, in the second quarter, Canalys reports that Apple’s shipments in China increased by 17 percent, highlighting the importance of its computers.
A reluctance to completely transition to local alternatives by 2024 has many reasons behind it. Firstly, in terms of security, Macs have historically shown to be more robust in this regard compared to Windows notebooks and desktops and though there is malware developed specifically targeting macOS, those threats are few in number. Next, we have Apple’s massive presence in the region, allowing for first-class after-sales service for each Mac model, making the repair or replacement procedure a breeze, even if Apple is criticized for charging a premium for those services.
The only other alternative left for China is to issue computers to government employees from local firms such as Xiaomi and Huawei, but even then, those machines will end up running Windows, an operating system owned by Microsoft, a U.S.-based company. There are rumors doing the rounds that Huawei will introduce HarmonyOS to Windows computers in 2024, so a switch to this platform appears to be the only viable option, but for the time being, it is just a rumor.
Even if China manages to replace all Macs at a state-owned level, it is not stopping consumers from purchasing various models, keeping Apple’s business thriving. For now, there are few alternatives that the authorities can turn to, and it cannot deliver on the same security protocols as macOS.
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