Benzinga | May 20, 2021 09:45AM EDT

Apple's Business Model Is To Sell 'Overpriced, Obsolete' Hardware, iPhone Users Are 'Digital Slaves,' Says Telegram Founder

Co-founder and co-owner of privacy-focused application Telegram, Pavel Durov, criticized Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) for bowing to the Chinese government and its obsolete hardware through his official channel on the messaging platform Wednesday.

What Happened: Durov shared a New York Times article that examined the Tim Cook-led company's involvement in Chinese censorship and surveillance on his Telegram channel.

"It's no wonder that Apple's totalitarian approach is so appreciated by the Communist Party of China, which -- thanks to Apple -- now has complete control over the apps and data of all its citizens who rely on iPhones," alleged Durov.

The Telegram co-founder also tore into Apple's supposedly outdated hardware which he claimed reminded him of the "Middle Ages" when he used an iPhone for testing purposes.

"The iPhone's 60Hz displays can't compete with the 120Hz displays of modern Android phones that support much smoother animations."

See also: How To Buy Apple Stock

Why It Matters: Durov said on Apple-China links that it was "sad, but not surprising: big tech companies often choose profits over freedoms."

As per the tech entrepreneur, the worst part of owning an iPhone is that it makes you a "digital slave of Apple."

"You are only allowed to use apps that Apple lets you install via their App Store, and you can only use Apple's iCloud to natively back up your data."

The Cupertino, California-based tech giant's App Store policies have put it into legal conflict with "Fortnite" maker Epic Games and others such as Spotify Technologies S.A. (NYSE:SPOT).

Yet, Apple's internal email correspondence indicates it went to great lengths to keep Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) from abandoning in-app purchases -- a major point of contention between itself and Epic.

Price Action: Apple shares closed nearly 0.1% lower at $125.69 in Wednesday's regular session and fell another almost 0.3% in the after-hours session.

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