CASE STUDY

Google in China

The Story of Google.cn

At the end of 2000, Google created a Chinese-
language version of its home page. Users of Google in
China were directly linked to the Chinese-language
search interface. Providing search services entirely
from California, Google acquired a twenty-five
percent share of the Chinese search-engine market.
Nonetheless, the Chinese governments Internet
filtering technology irregularly blocked Google.com
in China from 2002 to 2003.Although the website
was restored later, the company was not satisfied
with the quality of service it provided in China.
By the year 2002, Google.coms Chinese user base
mainly consisted of white collar, pro-Western
Chinese businesspeople.

From a financial perspective, China represented for
Google a dynamic andfast-growing, though
increasingly competitive, market.Googles decision to
self-censor Google.cn attracted significant ethical
criticism at the time. The choice to accept self-
censorship, and the discussion and debate generated
by this choice, forced Google to re-examine itself as a
company and forced the international community to
reconsider the implications of censorship.