With the image of flowers at the base of the Google sign at
the company’s Wudaokou location in Beijing, it seems more then likely that
China will be moving forward without the world’s #1 search engine. Reactions to
the proposed plans have been varied throughout the media. According to a Wall
Street Journal website poll, 72% of 934 Chinese WSJ voters voted that Google
should stay (so much so that fans of the site have camped outside the Wudaokou
branch in protest of internet freedom) while 80% of English readers feel Google
should pack their bags and get outta dodge. James Fallows, chief speech writer for former President Jimmy Carter and writer for the
Atlantic Monthly put in his two cents:
"The significance for Google is of
the "last straw" variety. For years, the company has struggled to
maintain the right path in China. Its policy around the world is that it will
obey the law of whatever country it operates in...
Dealing with those requirements has
been part of a non-stop set of difficulties for Google in China. Like most
other Western companies, Google has consistently decided to cope with the
difficulties and stay in China. Part of the reason was the obvious commercial
potential that the Chinese market has for almost any company in any industry.
Another part was Google's argument -- which I basically believe -- that the
Chinese public was better off with another source of information, even if
constrained, than it would be without that option. But, as reported on Google's
site, a latest wave of provocations and intrusions was simply too much..."
Not all people are impressed by Google’s stance on censorship rights. Bill Gates, Chairman of Microsoft and competitor with their own search engine Bing, spoke to the New York Times "Bits" column and shared that “They’ve done nothing and gotten a lot of credit for it. What point are they making?” He asks referring to that every country works with their own laws and censorship and you have to abide by them if you want to work with them. Bill Gates then ends with, “Now, if Google ever chooses to pull out of the United States, then I’d give them credit.”