Will Google China be no more?
In January, following the hacking of several Gmail accounts, Google said:
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.
According to a recent report by the Wall Street Journal, China isn’t budging:
At a press conference Friday, Li Yizhong, Minister of Industry and Information Technology, was asked by a reporter how China would react if Google does stop censoring Google.cn. “I hope Google can respect Chinese rules and regulations,” responded Mr. Li, whose ministry is one of several that regulates China’s Internet. “If you insist on taking this action that violates Chinese laws, I repeat: you are unfriendly and irresponsible, and you yourself will have to bear the consequences.”
Reports noted here earlier last week indicated that scientists felt a China without Google would cripple research, but the general public was more than happy to use Baidu instead. It looks as though China is calling Google’s bluff, and Google in turn is calling China’s – a report from the Financial Times seems to indicate Google will make good on their threat to pull out altogether:
Google has drawn up detailed plans for the closure of its Chinese search engine and is now “99.9 per cent” certain to go ahead as talks over censorship with the Chinese authorities have reached an apparent impasse, according to a person familiar with the company’s thinking.
In a hardening of positions on both sides, the Chinese government also on Friday threw down a direct public challenge to the US search company, with a warning that it was not prepared to compromise on internet censorship to stop Google leaving.
The signs that Google was on the brink of closing Google.cn, its local search service in China, came two months after it promised to stop bowing to censorship there. But while a decision could be made very soon, the company is likely to take some time to follow through with the plan as it seeks an orderly closure and takes steps to protect local employees from retaliation by the authorities, the person familiar with its position said.
Wow. If Google really does shut down Google.cn, it could have a huge effect on the balance of power in China – those not satisfied with Baidu would likely turn to Google competitor Yahoo or even Bing.
Tags: Baidu, censorship China, China, Google.cn