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Sure, and right now Baidu is doing that for them. Baidu is likely not as good at it as Google, but Baidu is also much more likely to comply willingly. Google ca

by darawk 8y ago

Sure, and right now Baidu is doing that for them. Baidu is likely not as good at it as Google, but Baidu is also much more likely to comply willingly. Google can drag their feet and build low quality censorship/anti-privacy tools for the Chinese government, and simply say "sorry it's the best we could do". By abdicating that responsibility to an actor like Baidu, who is much more aligned with the Chinese government, they make the problem worse. By agreeing to their demands, and then doing the shittiest job possible of complying, they actually have a lot more power and influence. > Edit: Do you honestly think that once the Chinese government has some leverage over Google (because they now make a portion of their revenue from the Chinese market) they wouldn't use that to get additional concessions? Yes, but that's a two way street. Chinese citizens will come to rely on Google search, and will be unhappy when its taken away. So both sides become enmeshed.

j2kun 8y ago
What part of Google's behavior thus far makes you think they'll drag their feet?
- darawk 8y ago
  You mean, other than the fact that they pulled out in the first place for ethical reasons? And that it's long been a contentious issue among the founders of the company, again, for ethical reasons? I'm not sure I can take this question seriously.
darpa_escapee 8y ago
> Google can drag their feet and build low quality censorship/anti-privacy tools for the Chinese government, and simply say "sorry it's the best we could do". Why would they? They're out to make money and they'll make much less money by making enemies with the CCP. We can also look at history: American companies have no problem doing business with authoritarian and repressive regimes. Sometimes they even prop them up.
AlexandrB 8y ago
> Baidu is likely not as good at it as Google, but Baidu is also much more likely to comply willingly. Google can drag their feet and build low quality censorship/anti-privacy tools for the Chinese government, and simply say "sorry it's the best we could do". This is an argument akin to "I'm joining the system so I can change it from the inside". This can work, but you need leverage. What leverage would Google have over the Chinese government in this case? Say what you will about the current Chinese leadership, but they're not stupid and they know what Google is capable of. If they think Google is dragging they're feet why wouldn't they just block Google again?
- darawk 8y ago
  Or just...i'm joining the system, and i'm going to do whatever I can to help it as little as possible, while providing a valuable service to its people.
  - pas 8y ago
    Sure, that's the known positive. But this makes Google 1984 compatible in other regimes too. And with the capability there it's a matter of configuration to run it in other countries too. Proliferation of totalitarian machinery is a worry.
curt15 8y ago
>By abdicating that responsibility to an actor like Baidu, who is much more aligned with the Chinese government, And how can companies establish a major presence in China unless they are aligned with the Chinese government?

by darawk 8y ago

j2kun 8y ago

What part of Google's behavior thus far makes you think they'll drag their feet?

darawk 8y ago
You mean, other than the fact that they pulled out in the first place for ethical reasons? And that it's long been a contentious issue among the founders of the company, again, for ethical reasons? I'm not sure I can take this question seriously.

darpa_escapee 8y ago

> Google can drag their feet and build low quality censorship/anti-privacy tools for the Chinese government, and simply say "sorry it's the best we could do". Why would they? They're out to make money and they'll make much less money by making enemies with the CCP. We can also look at history: American companies have no problem doing business with authoritarian and repressive regimes. Sometimes they even prop them up.

AlexandrB 8y ago

> Baidu is likely not as good at it as Google, but Baidu is also much more likely to comply willingly. Google can drag their feet and build low quality censorship/anti-privacy tools for the Chinese government, and simply say "sorry it's the best we could do". This is an argument akin to "I'm joining the system so I can change it from the inside". This can work, but you need leverage. What leverage would Google have over the Chinese government in this case? Say what you will about the current Chinese leadership, but they're not stupid and they know what Google is capable of. If they think Google is dragging they're feet why wouldn't they just block Google again?

darawk 8y ago
Or just...i'm joining the system, and i'm going to do whatever I can to help it as little as possible, while providing a valuable service to its people.
- pas 8y ago
  Sure, that's the known positive. But this makes Google 1984 compatible in other regimes too. And with the capability there it's a matter of configuration to run it in other countries too. Proliferation of totalitarian machinery is a worry.

curt15 8y ago

>By abdicating that responsibility to an actor like Baidu, who is much more aligned with the Chinese government, And how can companies establish a major presence in China unless they are aligned with the Chinese government?