Has Tibet forced China to block access to Apple's iTunes?

Last Modified: 21 Aug 2008
By: Benjamin Cohen

Is China blocking access to iTunes because the music service is offering downloads of pro-Tibetan songs?

One of the biggest markets for Apple is out of bounds, it appears.

The Chinese authorities have apparently blocked access to their iTunes service following the release of The Art of Peace Foundation's new album Songs for Tibet, a compilation of tunes about the rights of ethnic Tibetans in China's mountainous south west.

Chinese consumers have been experiencing problems accessing the music store since Monday after the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) claimed that 46 athletes from North America, Europe and Beijing downloaded the album, which was offered to them for free.

Chinese IT experts said today that the government has probably disabled the music selection function of the service. The country is well known for it's "Great Firewall of China", a system designed to filter out material that is critical to the Communist regime.

Chinese internet users are also monitored to record whether they even try to access unfavourable material.

Apple has today admitted that there is a problem with iTunes, but has so far declined to give any further information.