Russia will require all phones and tablets sold from September 1 to come preinstalled with MAX, its state-backed messenger app and the RuStore app store. From January 1, smart TVs must also ship with LIME HD TV for free state channel streaming.
MAX, soon to integrate government services, has faced spying accusations, which officials deny. The move comes amid tensions with WhatsApp and Telegram, recently restricted by the Kremlin. MAX now has 18M users, far behind WhatsApp (97.3M) and Telegram (90.8M).
Source: 9to5Mac
