Amazon is closing down its official app store in China later this year.
As the South China Morning Post reports, Amazon hasn't divulged a reason for the shut down, but it's thought a combination of tightened regulations over data and privacy, combined with competition from local companies, ultimately sealed the fate of Amazon's digital store.
According to Chinese newspaper The Paper, Amazon intends to close the store on July 17. However, downloading the store app in China no longer seems to be possible, suggesting only existing users will retain access for the next couple of months.
The Amazon Appstore originally launched back in 2011, but only became available to Chinese users in 2013. It offers a mix of free and premium Android-compatible apps and is mainly used for Amazon's own Fire-branded devices running Fire OS. There's roughly half a million apps available to download through the store.
News of the app store closure follows Amazon's decision last year to shut down its Kindle Store in China. New ebooks can only be purchased until June 30 this year, and the Kindle app will be removed from Chinese app stores in 2024. Retailers in China have also stopped receiving Kindle devices to sell. The main Amazon retail website (Amazon.cn) and Amazon Web Services will remain available in the country, though.