Apple has taken down leading Chinese gay dating applications Blued and Finka from the nation’s App Store, as reported by WIRED.

The company acted on a government directive to eliminate the apps. “We adhere to the laws in the regions we serve. Following an order from the Cyberspace Administration of China, we have withdrawn these two applications from the China store only,” an Apple representative stated to WIRED via email. “Earlier this year, the Finka developer opted to take the app off stores outside of China, while Blued was accessible solely within China.”

Blued and Finka, which belong to the same parent organization, BlueCity, have also allegedly been taken off various Android marketplaces. Users who had previously downloaded the applications can continue to use them, according to WIRED.

Blued debuted in 2012 and had amassed 60 million registered users globally by 2021. It served as a location-based dating and livestreaming platform for gay and bisexual men. Rest of World noted that year that it initially mirrored the American gay dating service Jack’d in Chinese. Finka, on the other hand, acts as a social network aimed at younger gay and bisexual males, and BlueCity acquired it in 2020. Blued is marketed as HeeSay outside China.

This move reflects the Chinese government’s growing crackdown on LGBTQ content and advocacy organizations in recent years. Although public acceptance of LGBTQ individuals has risen in China, Human Rights Watch notes that government repression and censorship have also intensified. Same-sex marriage remains illegal in China.

Grindr has already been removed from China’s App Store, making it unsearchable there. Per the 2021 Rest of World article, BlueCity’s ability to operate in China was partially due to its provision of sexual health services like HIV testing. However, in 2022, founder Ma Baoli resigned as CEO and alluded to the challenges of running an LGBTQ enterprise in China.