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I'm not sure they can just block all Google services all of a sudden. What about mail. What about docs. What about turning off your Google Adwords account.

by netcan 17y ago

blhack 17y ago
Why on earth is this comment being downmodded? Netscan makes a completely valid point. What China should, in my opinion, do is slowly phase google out; throttle traffic to google's servers and then release some news articles with false statements from google that they can't support the traffic. Getting the people of China to willfully abandon Google would be good in the eyes of the Chinese government.
netcan 17y ago
I think (judging by downvotes) that I am being misunderstood. My thinking was along these lines: Mr Small Chinese Exporter wakes up tomorrow unable to access his Google Adwords account which is how he connects to foreign importers. He's out of widgets and wants to stop advertising them. He can't even suspend the campaign and they keep charging his credit card. That's bad business. I'm not sure China would want to do that suddenly even if they do plan to eventually block all of Google's stuff. I took "al' Google service" to mean all the different Google products.
- tel 17y ago
  Historically, China would do that. Probably it'll depend on how many influential people actually use google docs and such. I suspect not enough.
  - dpatru 17y ago
    Perhaps this was Google's strategy from the beginning. Introduce useful services into the Chinese market while accepting government restrictions, then when enough Chinese have become dependent on these services, try to negotiate the restrictions from a position of strength, knowing that China would not want to be responsible for leaving Google's Chinese customers without service.
- riobard 17y ago
  What happens to "Mr Small Chinese Exporter" is never a concern for such a government like the Chinese one ...
  - netcan 17y ago
    I disagree.
davidmurphy 17y ago
The Atlantic's James Fallows ran a piece last year about how the Great Firewall works. Long read, but quite interesting. http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200803/chinese-firewall http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200803/chinese-firewall

I'm not sure they can just block all Google services all of a sudden. What about mail. What about docs. What about turning off your Google Adwords account.

by netcan 17y ago

I'm not sure they can just block all Google services all of a sudden. What about mail. What about docs. What about turning off your Google Adwords account.

blhack 17y ago

Why on earth is this comment being downmodded? Netscan makes a completely valid point. What China should, in my opinion, do is slowly phase google out; throttle traffic to google's servers and then release some news articles with false statements from google that they can't support the traffic. Getting the people of China to willfully abandon Google would be good in the eyes of the Chinese government.

netcan 17y ago

I think (judging by downvotes) that I am being misunderstood. My thinking was along these lines: Mr Small Chinese Exporter wakes up tomorrow unable to access his Google Adwords account which is how he connects to foreign importers. He's out of widgets and wants to stop advertising them. He can't even suspend the campaign and they keep charging his credit card. That's bad business. I'm not sure China would want to do that suddenly even if they do plan to eventually block all of Google's stuff. I took "al' Google service" to mean all the different Google products.

tel 17y ago
Historically, China would do that. Probably it'll depend on how many influential people actually use google docs and such. I suspect not enough.
- dpatru 17y ago
  Perhaps this was Google's strategy from the beginning. Introduce useful services into the Chinese market while accepting government restrictions, then when enough Chinese have become dependent on these services, try to negotiate the restrictions from a position of strength, knowing that China would not want to be responsible for leaving Google's Chinese customers without service.
riobard 17y ago
What happens to "Mr Small Chinese Exporter" is never a concern for such a government like the Chinese one ...
- netcan 17y ago
  I disagree.

davidmurphy 17y ago

The Atlantic's James Fallows ran a piece last year about how the Great Firewall works. Long read, but quite interesting. http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200803/chinese-firewall http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200803/chinese-firewall