Fracas Curtails China iPhone Sales

Apple said it would temporarily stop selling the iPhone in its five retail stores in China after unruly customers in Beijing led police to seal off a store there and after the newest version of the phone sold out elsewhere.

An Apple spokeswoman in Beijing said that the iPhone 4S, which made its debut on Jan 13 in the country, won't be offered at its retail stores in Beijing and Shanghai "for the time being." She said, however, it would still be available online, through local partner China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd. and through resellers. She cited the disturbance at the Sanlitun store in Beijing, where hundreds of customers waited overnight and where frustration boiled over Friday morning.