Google VS. China

[CGM]

Google will quit China unless web censorship ends - Telegraph

In a surprise announcement, the group issued a veiled attack at Chinese censors and said it was prepared to shut down its operations there entirely if the authorities do not allow it to create an unfiltered search engine.

The company courted controversy in 2006 when it launched in China but, as a concession to the Communist government, agreed to filter the results available on its website for "inappropriate" content. It does not operate such filters in other major countries.

In a blog on the company's website, its corporate development and chief legal officer, David Drummond, said Google did so then because of the “benefits of increased access to information for people in China and a more open Internet”. However, he said a number of recent cyber attacks – apparently targeting human rights activists – and recent clampdowns on freedom of speech on the web "have led us to conclude that we should review the feasibility of our business operations in China.

"We have decided we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on Google.cn... and so over the next few weeks we will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all. We recognize that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our offices in China."

[Sara Yang]

Wow...Please don't... I love google.cn..But I don't think chinese goverment will end the censorship..

[shoestringventure]

I don't think google will be quitting China, there is lot of business potential at stake and Google can't even think of missing it. Just imagine a Market with over a Billion people?

[azance]

China won't be ending it. All this will do is make a Chinese based everything better and pump more money into their economy. Chinese ad program, chinese search engine, chinese email, chinese everything. I'm not thinking it will be a bad thing for the average user. Those making money on Google or doing intense research may be harmed with it.

[Sara Yang]

there is another saying that google is loosing money on Chinese market, that's why they are thinking about shutting down google.cn

[shoestringventure]

there is another saying that google is loosing money on Chinese market, that's why they are thinking about shutting down google.cn

How can you say that? do you have any data to back up? I mean what is google's investment in china? Is it related to building infrastructure only?

China is a huge market with loads of business potential. What any one needs to do is, provide more localized services.

[CGM]

Well, I do think Google as a business does not "need" China. Would it be beneficial, of course. But Google is dominant everywhere else, and for them to lose China they're probably just shrugging it off. "Eh, so whats an extra x-amount of millions per year? We'll just kickass everywhere else and leave China high and dry until they get their act together."

Of course, this is assumption only.

[chinaoilpainting]

I don`t know why Google.cn shut down. It sounds impossible. The reason is not the Government, but the strategy of Google. It`s well-know to all that China is a great market for a company. If Google lose it, what does it mean to Google? And what will happen to Google China Company?

[epvirtualassistants]

oh....i haven't read that article before. that was last year. so what's the latest about that now? was that pursued?

[ryanfromrethink]

Google just recently stated that they do want to continue doing business in China. I agree with the poster who said Google does not "need" China. On the other hand, what giant company doesn't want a few more hundred million in ad revenue. About time something in China is made in America anyway :P

[cheapriver]

I think it's a good thing that google is putting some pressure on the Chinese government to have less censorship, but I'm afraid they'll loose this battle. I think censorship will in the end stop in China but it's the people in China themselves who have to do this

[andreatoworld]

I think it's a good thing that google is putting some pressure on the Chinese government to have less censorship, but I'm afraid they'll loose this battle. I think censorship will in the end stop in China but it's the people in China themselves who have to do this

Yes.. Same idea!

[Boris the SEO]

I can't blame Google if they chose to leave. I once worked for a company that had patented processes for their equipment and refused to do business in China. They knew that their intellectual property would not be protected.

They could not afford to have a low cost Chinese knock off of their equipment so they stayed out of the market.