Analysis: Why China Is A No-Go Land For Google
This article discusses Google’s reasons for exiting the Chinese market in 2006, the consequences of this decision, and the possible implications of Google’s reentry into the Chinese market in 2018. Since Google’s exit from the Chinese market in 2006, China has become the world’s second largest economy by nominal GPA and the world’s largest economy by purchasing power parity. Obviously, this makes China an extremely important economic hunting ground for western tech companies. However, the Authoritarian government restrictions, ethical barriers and already established National Chinese competitors such as Baidu would make it extremely difficult for Google to gain a dominant position in the Chinese market.
Ethical differences were the primary motivation for Google’s exit from the Chinese market in 2006. Google is a company founded on the values of free speech and free information. These values are not upheld in China, a country under the authoritarian control of a communist regime. As a result of Google’s unwillingness to comply with China’s pro-censorship policies, a competitor search engine, Baidu, has risen and captured the vast majority of the Chinese market. Baidu is heavily censored and monitored by Chinese government officials. In order to gain a foothold in the Chinese market, Google would have to sacrifice some of its own comapny values and implement the same censorship as Baidu in China.
This fact sparks a debate as to whether it would ultimately be beneficial for Google to re-enter the Chinese market in 2018. Google’s bowing to Chinese authoritarian power could signal a massive political shift on the world stage. Billions of people in the most populous Country on earth would be denied access to vital information that Google would provide to the rest of the world. As a result of this unethical double standard for eastern and western customers, a large portion of the western market would lose faith in Google and switch over to competitors such as Safari and Firefox.
In my own personal opinion, it would be vastly more beneficial for the whole human population if Google reentered the Chinese market. This is because a cooperation between Google and the authoritarian dictatorship in China could mean informational and cross-cultural exchange that would bring the world closer to harmonious globalization. As the process of globalization takes place at a faster rate than ever due to rapidly evolving technology, national barriers are already beginning to dissolve. I believe that a cooperation of this nature would expedite this process and bring us closer to a more diplomatic relationship among all countries.
Link to original article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/cognitiveworld/2018/08/30/why-china-is-a-no-go-land-for-google/#43986a935b3c