HKmap.live is a
web mapping
Web mapping or an online mapping is the process of using maps, usually created through geographic information systems (GIS), on the Internet, more specifically in the World Wide Web (WWW). A web map or an online map is both served and consumed, t ...
service which
crowdsource
Crowdsourcing involves a large group of dispersed participants contributing or producing goods or services—including ideas, votes, micro-tasks, and finances—for payment or as volunteers. Contemporary crowdsourcing often involves digit ...
s and tracks the location of protesters and police in Hong Kong. The service was launched during the
2019–2020 Hong Kong protests
The Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement, also known as the 2019 Hong Kong protests, or the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests, were a series of demonstrations from 15 March 2019 in response to the introduction by the Hong Kong government ...
and gathers reports on police patrols and tear gas deployments via
Telegram
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
. The service is available for
smartphone
A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, whic ...
users in an
Android
Android may refer to:
Science and technology
* Android (robot), a humanoid robot or synthetic organism designed to imitate a human
* Android (operating system), Google's mobile operating system
** Bugdroid, a Google mascot sometimes referred to ...
version via the
Google Play Store
Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android operating sys ...
and in a
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an information system enabling documents and other web resources to be accessed over the Internet.
Documents and downloadable media are made available to the network through web se ...
version, while the iOS smartphone version was removed by
Apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...
.
Development and operation
The service was launched in August 2019 by
LIHKG
LIHKG ( zh, t=連登, cy=Lìhn dāng) is a multi-category forum website based in Hong Kong. The website has gained popularity since the launch in 2016, and is often referred to as the Hong Kong version of Reddit.
Threads with more up-votes and re ...
member 5YH; according to the developer, the website had more than ten thousand unique visitors on the first day. It gathers reports from
instant messaging
Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat allowing real-time text transmission over the Internet or another computer network. Messages are typically transmitted between two or more parties, when each user inputs text and trigge ...
service
Telegram
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
on police patrols and tear gas deployments.
The service allows users to track police activity on Hong Kong streets, providing ongoing information on police movements via messages and GPS locations. This allows citizens to move away from areas where police action may take place, and notify others of actions that may be taken in different places.
The service is available in an
Android
Android may refer to:
Science and technology
* Android (robot), a humanoid robot or synthetic organism designed to imitate a human
* Android (operating system), Google's mobile operating system
** Bugdroid, a Google mascot sometimes referred to ...
version via the
Google Play Store
Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android operating sys ...
and in a web version, while the iOS version was removed by Apple.
iOS app
Initial rejection and approval
The
iOS
iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...
version of HKmap.live was initially submitted to
Apple Inc.
Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company b ...
on 21 September 2019 and was rejected from its
App Store
An App Store (or app marketplace) is a type of digital distribution platform for computer software called applications, often in a mobile context. Apps provide a specific set of functions which, by definition, do not include the running of the co ...
five days later on an issue regarding payment options. The app's developer fixed the issue and re-submitted the application, though Apple again rejected the app on 2 October.
According to the company, the rejection was because it "facilitates, enables, or encourages an activity that is not legal" and that it "allowed users to evade law enforcement".
In response, the developer said that they believed the rejection was caused by a bureaucratic error rather than censorship,
stating that the app was built to "show events happening" in Hong Kong and that they "do not encourage illegal activity". They also argued that the rejection was unfair because other apps such as
Waze
Waze (; he, ווייז, label=Hebrew), formerly FreeMap Israel, is a subsidiary company of Google that provides satellite navigation software on smartphones and other computers that support the Global Positioning System (GPS). In addition to ...
help drivers avoid traffic cameras and police, adding that Apple was assuming that HKmap.live users would break the law.
Apple reversed its decision on 4 October and the app was made available on the App Store a day later.
Removal
In an editorial published on 8 October, the ''
People's Daily
The ''People's Daily'' () is the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The newspaper provides direct information on the policies and viewpoints of the CCP. In addition to its main Chinese-language ...
'', the official mouthpiece of the
Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, officially the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is a political body that comprises the top leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It is currently composed of 205 fu ...
, argued that Apple endorsed and protected "rioters" in the
2019–2020 Hong Kong protests
The Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement, also known as the 2019 Hong Kong protests, or the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests, were a series of demonstrations from 15 March 2019 in response to the introduction by the Hong Kong government ...
by listing the app on its App Store. The article, which did not specifically name the app, suggested that Apple approving of the app after initial rejection made it an accomplice () for the protesters, allowing "Hong Kong rioters to openly commit crime while openly escaping arrests".
The article also criticised Apple for listing the protest anthem "
Glory to Hong Kong
"Glory to Hong Kong" ( zh, t=願榮光歸香港) is a march that was composed and written by a musician under the pseudonym "Thomas dgx yhl", with the contribution of a group of Hongkonger netizens from the online forum LIHKG during the 201 ...
", frequently sung in the protests, on its Hong Kong music store, though it did not directly name the song.
Verna Yu of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' described this condemnation as an attempt by China to force foreign companies to conform to its views, comparing it to a recent incident where state broadcaster
China Central Television
China Central Television (CCTV) is a Chinese state- and political party-owned broadcaster controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Its 50 different channels broadcast a variety of programing to more than one billion viewers in six lan ...
and Chinese companies cancelled collaboration with the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
after
Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...
general manager
Daryl Morey
Daryl Morey (born September 14, 1972) is an American sports executive who is the president of basketball operations of the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He co-founded the annual MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conf ...
tweeted
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
in support of the Hong Kong protests.
Apple removed the app the next day. In its statement, Apple said that the app violated their guidelines and local laws, stating that it "has been used to target and ambush police" and "threaten public safety" according to information provided by the (CSTCB), part of the
Hong Kong Police Force
The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) is the primary law enforcement, investigative agency, and largest Hong Kong Disciplined Services, disciplined service under the Security Bureau (Hong Kong), Security Bureau of Hong Kong. The Royal Hong Kong Po ...
.
Jack Nicas of ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' noted that like other companies, Apple had to balance between maintaining access to the Chinese market with the "negative public image of capitulating" to its government, though argued that Apple had more at stake in China than other multinational companies with most of its product assembly in China and its reliance on the Chinese market. The developer criticised Apple's decision on Thursday, saying on Twitter that it does not "solicit, promote, or encourage criminal activity." It also argued that there was no evidence to support the CSTCB's claim that the app has been used to target or ambush police, or that it threatened public safety.
Users who had already downloaded the app can still use it after it was removed.
Before it was removed, the iOS app was the most downloaded app under the Travel category in Apple's Hong Kong App Store.
Responses
In an internal email written to all Apple employees, CEO
Tim Cook
Timothy Donald Cook (born November 1, 1960) is an American business executive who has been the chief executive officer of Apple Inc. since 2011. Cook previously served as the company's chief operating officer under its co-founder Steve Jobs.
...
defended the company's decision to remove the app, saying that it was "being used maliciously to target individual officers for violence and to victimize individuals and property where no police are present." However, Cook's claims have been disputed by international observers in Hong Kong, who stated that individual violations as described do not match up with what the service displays.
Charles Mok
Charles Peter Mok, JP (born 1964 in Hong Kong) is a Hong Kong-based Internet entrepreneur and IT advocate who formerly represents the Information Technology functional constituency on the Hong Kong Legislative Council.
Mok founded HKNet in ...
, a
Professional Commons
The Professional Commons is an independent, membership-based, non-profit organisation and public policy think tank established in Hong Kong on 25 March 2007. It is open to all professionals who share the same values.
Mission
The Professional ...
member of the
Legislative Council of Hong Kong
The Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (LegCo) is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong. It sits under China's " one country, two systems" constitutional arrangement, and is the power centre of Hong Kong ...
, said in a letter to Cook that he was "deeply disappointed" by Apple's decision to remove the app, stating that the service helps Hong Kong residents avoid areas where pedestrians may be subjected to
police brutality
Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, but is not limited to, ...
and excessive force by the police during crowd dispersal operations.
Maciej Cegłowski
Maciej Cegłowski (born 1975) is a Polish-American web developer, entrepreneur, speaker, and social critic, based in San Francisco, California. He is the owner of the bookmarking service Pinboard, which he calls a social bookmarking site for intro ...
, a software developer and activist who was in Hong Kong during the protests, said that the claim that the app violated the law was similarly unsupported, saying that neither Cook nor Apple pointed out which law the app violated. Cegłowski also thought that double standards were in play, comparing the app to Waze, which similarly allows tracking of law enforcement but is still available on the iOS platform.
When asked about Apple removing the app specifically,
Geng Shuang
Geng Shuang (; born April 1973) is a Chinese politician serving as China's Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations. He formerly served as the deputy director of the Foreign Ministry Information Department of the People's Republic o ...
, a spokesman for China's
Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...
, reiterated the Chinese government's stance, describing the protests as "extreme, violent acts, challenging Hong Kong's rule of law and order, threatening the safety of Hong Kong's people" that should be opposed.
In an 18 October letter addressed to Tim Cook, US Senators
Ron Wyden
Ronald Lee Wyden (; born May 3, 1949) is an American politician and retired educator serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Oregon, a seat he has held since 1996 United Stat ...
,
Tom Cotton
Thomas Bryant Cotton (born May 13, 1977) is an American politician, attorney, and former military officer serving as the junior United States senator for Arkansas since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the U.S. House of R ...
,
Marco Rubio
Marco Antonio Rubio (born May 28, 1971) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the senior United States senator from Florida, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he served as Speaker of the Florida Hous ...
and
Ted Cruz
Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz served as Solicitor General of Texas from ...
, and Representatives
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of th ...
,
Mike Gallagher and
Tom Malinowski
Tomasz "Tom" P. Malinowski (; born September 23, 1965) is an American politician and diplomat who is the U.S. representative from New Jersey's 7th congressional district. A Democrat, he served as Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human R ...
expressed "strong concern" over Apple's decision to remove the app. The letter stated that such examples cause "concern about whether Apple and other large US corporate entities will bow to growing Chinese demands rather than lose access to a billion Chinese consumers." The letter was seen as a rare example of bipartisanship in the US Congress, because Cruz and Ocasio-Cortez, two signatories to the letter, are typically seen as being on opposite sides of the American political spectrum.
See also
*
Live Universal Awareness Map
Live Universal Awareness Map, commonly known as Liveuamap, is an internet service to monitor and indicate activities on online geographic maps, particularly of locations with list of ongoing armed conflicts, ongoing armed conflicts. It was develope ...
References
External links
*
{{2019–2020 Hong Kong protests
2019–2020 Hong Kong protests
Android (operating system) software
IOS software
Web mapping
Internet properties established in 2019
2019 establishments in Hong Kong