Will Google Leave China?

I confirm that I am one of those who has been implacable about Google's decision to accept the compromise of its pure search engine by adjusting it in order to make China's politicians comfortable and thereby gain entry into that country. To start with, this flexibility displayed a betrayal of Google's longstanding and declared principles so that it may have a chance to introduce a dedicated search engine in that large market. With that background, I was quite pleasantly surprised to learn that in a statement issued on the official Google blog here, Google declared that it intended to adopt a new approach to China. The genesis of this rethink relates to a serious of stealth attacks on its corporate servers and the loss of unspecified intellectual property. Of equally great concern is the fact that the privacy of some Gmail users was compromised by persons in China. the seriousness of this public information is the statement towards the end that Google China will shortly cease to censor any searches conducted through the service and that it would shut down Goggle.cn if an amicable settlement with the government does not obtain.

As a starting point, I would think that Google and China are examples of how small corporations and a large country could build deserved success by doing things sensibly and obeying a number of laws that respect markets. However, in the approach to freedom, it is clear to me that in spite of its success, China could do a lot more to expand individual freedom to complement the many things that it has done right over three decades.

Many cynics see Google's uniquely bold action as a desperate move for a corporation that is leader in search almost everywhere save in China. I think that this reasoning is a rather naive because even a second place in a fast growing China is still a good position for Google. While I am disappointed with the political risk analysis that Google received in trying a failed placatory approach, it is important to note that Google seems to think that as business with a commitment to some ethics, it may still withdraw and forgo the market even in a large economy as China's. While I hope but would not bet that Chinese leaders would consider this issue clearly, I am obliged to agree with Nicholas Kristof that Google's exit would be China's loss in the long term. To my mind, it would reflect the fact that China's leaders are frightened by the fact that its citizens may use Gmail and the search engine. That would not provide confidence for managing an increasingly growing and complex society.