From AliExpress to Snack Video: Here are some apps with Chinese ties that have flown under the radar

Representative picture.

Earlier this month, the Indian government put 118 more Chinese apps on its list of banned apps in the country, taking the total number of Chinese apps blacklisted in India to 224 apps.

TikTok, PUBG Mobile, SHAREit, WeChat, and Shein, among others, are some of the most popular apps to get the axe. However, there are several very popular Chinese apps that have managed to fly under the radar, surviving the government’s three bans.

AliExpress is a popular e-commerce app with more than 100 million downloads on the Google Play Store. The app offers users to buy different products and goods at discounted prices. AliExpress is a Chinese retail company owned by Alibaba Group Ltd.

Snack Video is another one of those TikTok alternatives. It is also known as Kuaishou in China and currently has over 100 million downloads on the Google Play Store. While Snack Video is a Singapore-based app, its parent company Kuaishou Technology is a popular Chinese software firm backed by Tencent.

Starmaker is another popular Android app with over 100 million installs on the Play Store. The app is owned by StarMaker Interactive Inc., a US-based company. While Starmaker is not a Chinese app, it was acquired by Everyone Happy Entertainment Ltd., a company affiliated with Beijing Kunlun Tech.

NetEase Games is a Chinese Internet technology company that still has a bunch of games listed on the Google Play Store. While the Indian government has banned games like Rules of Survival, LifeAfter and Knives Out, the company has several games on the Play Store that are still available for download. Stick Fight, Onmyoji Arena, Galactic Frontline, and EVE Echoes are among the several NetEase Games still available on the Play Store.

Resso is another popular app with Chinese ties that is still available on the Google Play Store. Resso has over 10 million installs on the Google Play Store. Unlike Resso is a music streaming service that was launched in India in March. Resso is a subsidiary of ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company.

Call of Duty: Mobile is arguably perhaps the most shocking entrant to this list. Call of Duty: Mobile is one of the most popular mobile games and was one of the best games on Android in 2019. The game is developed by TiMi Studios and published by Activision and Garena for Android and iOS. TiMi Studios is a subsidiary of Tencent Games. However, Activision recently ended its partnership with TiMi Studios after Donald Trump signed an executive order to prohibit transactions with Tencent and ByteDance.