Google takes on the Chinese goverment!

From Businessweek:

Google Inc. defied China’s rules on self-censorship by redirecting mainland Chinese users to an unfiltered Hong Kong Web site, a move that may lead to the company quitting the world’s largest Internet market.

The company’s decision yesterday escalates a two-month dispute with the government and was called “totally wrong” by the official Xinhua news agency. Search results on the Tiananmen Square crackdown from computers in Shanghai and Beijing today could not be displayed in China, suggesting the government started limiting access to the Hong Kong service.

The U.S. government said it was “disappointed” Google and China failed to reach a compromise. The conflict has contributed to a deterioration of relations between the two countries, following disagreements over weapon sales to Taiwan and the valuation of the yuan.

“Google is playing a very dangerous game,” said Rob Enderle, president of Enderle Group in San Jose, California. “They could end up doing more damage than good.”

Searches within China for terms such as the outlawed “Falun Gong” spiritual movement yielded error messages on the mainland today, indicating the Hong Kong site was subject to the same restrictions as other overseas sites, including Google.com. The government’s Internet censorship system has been dubbed “The Great Firewall of China.”

Full story:
Google Stops Self-Censorship in Defiance of China?s Government - BusinessWeek

__________________
cheers Steve
Forum Admin - teaboy and general gofer...

Forum Rules and FAQ's at a glance | Find me on Google+ | or even Facebook!

My Local Services - The UK and US Online Business Directory | JobsVitae - Recruitment Help and CV Creation

If you're here to spam, then expect a ban

The words "banging", "Head", "Brick" & "Wall" spring to mind.. no point in fighting the government in China you will not win.

Best case scenario, Google pull out, China does not care, Google do no business there.

Worst case scenario, Google pull out, China does not care, Google do no business there and a couple of execs take a bus ride and are never seen again.

and a big wall at that!

__________________
cheers Steve
Forum Admin - teaboy and general gofer...

Forum Rules and FAQ's at a glance | Find me on Google+ | or even Facebook!

My Local Services - The UK and US Online Business Directory | JobsVitae - Recruitment Help and CV Creation

If you're here to spam, then expect a ban

I've been following the story for a bit now. My buddy & I have had a friendly wager on who would "win" the battle:
He said Google was among the world's most powerful companies - and was inclined that they would prevail.

I chose China on the basis that even a relatively minor country can break a company if that is their intent because they get to call the shots and can limit the company's ability to conduct business in the first place (which is really the premise of this entire story).

I assume you've seen the story a couple months ago where Google (along with some other select companies) were attacked by China hackers:
Official Google Blog: A new approach to China

China has a big population and it is a market that is only going to get bigger (if allowed). Other companies have succeeded - you need to play with the rules of the country you're working in. If you don't agree then pull out like Google have.

The one winner out of it is China's most popular (& censored) search engine, www.baidu.com

__________________
Web: mrb design
Twitter: mrbdesign

Forum Rules and FAQ's at a glance