'Critical' Chinese Apps Coming to Apple Vision Pro

Chinese tech giant Tencent has agreed to make some of its most important apps available on Apple's Vision Pro headset ahead of its launch in the country later this year, The Information reports.

apple vision pro eye
Tencent is one of the biggest multimedia companies in the world and its apps and services are ubiquitous in China. It owns Weibo, WeChat, QQ, WeBank, Tencent Pictures, and games such as Honor of Kings and PUBG.

Apple TV+ and many other entertainment services such as Disney+ are not available in China. "Without Tencent's contribution, Apple would have faced a greater challenge in marketing the Vision Pro in China," the report explains, calling the company's move "critical" to the device's success in the country.

Last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed that the Vision Pro will launch in China this year. It is likely to be more expensive in China due to import taxes and could even be marketed under a different name due to a trademark dispute with Huawei.

Apple is also apparently seeking Chinese partners to help it launch and run ‌Apple TV‌+, Apple Arcade, and Apple Fitness+ in the country. The company has not launched any new services in China since iCloud in 2017 due to government restrictions.

Related Roundup: Apple Vision Pro
Buyer's Guide: Vision Pro (Buy Now)
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Top Rated Comments

anthogag Avatar
11 months ago
It seems like Apple really has to bend over in China. So many Western things are banned in China.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rychiar Avatar
11 months ago

I wasn't going to buy 1st gen product but I was excited to see what it was. I'm surprised how little talk there is of it now and how quickly I forgot about it lol. When the iPhone and iPad came out it was exciting new technology that I felt like I needed to get ASAP.

I think there is potential but it's going to take many years if Apple decide to support it. It's not even available here in the UK and if it was I'd still not buy it. I'll grab the 4th or 5th gen headset if we get that far.
The iPhone was exciting. The iPad launch was boring. I’d didn’t want one til 4th gen. Same with the watch, the Vision Pro is more exciting to me than anything else out there. I get excited to go home and use mine every day?‍♂️
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BGPL Avatar
11 months ago

Don't worry, this thing is dead already
It may have flopped, but it will still drive innovation. They pushed Meta to develop the Quest 3, which is mixed reality, and there will be others. The major problem is the price point. Imagine if Apple only sold Mac Pros and didn't offer the $999 MacBooks or $599 Mac minis... they need a low cost option, which is coming.

I would love to see the numbers of how many AVPs were returned within the first 14 days. You can already find them on eBay and FB for under $3000, so folks are taking a > $1000 loss to unload them. The scalpers got absolutely pummeled on this one.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
widestload Avatar
11 months ago
Wanting to get onboard a device that is basically a walking set of cameras and sensors?........ ?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
scorpio vega Avatar
11 months ago
I had no idea china didn’t have Disney plus. That definitely is a challenge.

Hopefully with a china release this will further increase adoption of avp
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheShadowKnows! Avatar
11 months ago
After reading this Chinese-alliance article, I get a sinking feeling that Apple's future is totally "Cooked".
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)