The biggest media arrives in the biggest country
I’ve had a bit of a soft spot for Google, after all it’s only seven years old and its guiding principle is “Don’t do evil”.
But a couple of things have given me pause this week.
Writing (offline) in The Listener, Russell Brown reports:
By market capitalisation, the world’s biggest media company is Google. At the time of writing, the search company’s shares are trading at more than $US400, making the company’s total market value around $135 billion - slightly more than that of IBM.
[snip]
Now two US analysts …. suggest that on its current trajectory the company’s share price will eventually hit $2000, making Google the largest company in the world, without exception.
Such confidence is based not on Google’s current business, which lies almost entirely in online advertising, but on what it might have in store. It seems likely to follow the strategythat it has taken it thus far. Which is; Google has become the world’s biggest media company largely by outsourcing editorial
One version of what a Googlisied future may be like is Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson’s online short film Epic 2014, well worth a look if you haven’t seen it already.
OK, so size may, just once, not be a bad thing, particularly if they’re ‘doing no evil’ and are in a position to challenge some areas of Microsoft’s market domination (though, a two-party state is not that different from a one-party state).
But my scepticism on Google has been heightened today by their move into China. Reuters reports:
Internet search giant Google Inc will block politically sensitive terms on its new China site, bowing to conditions set by Beijing in return for access to the world’s number-two internet market.
[snip]
“In order to operate from China, we have removed some content from the search results available on Google.cn in response to local law, regulation or policy,” Andrew McLaughlin, Google’s senior policy counsel, said in a statement.
“While removing search results is inconsistent with Google’s mission, providing no information (or a heavily degraded user experience that amounts to no information) is more inconsistent with our mission.”
Okay, so they’re facing a tough balancing act. And I have to say, that I accept that round the edges some circumstance-specific censorship is probably unavoidable. Ironically, democracy sometimes depends on it. And it helps if the fact that censorship is happening is notified. Reuters again:
Google officials said they planned to notify users of its Google.cn service when the company has restricted access to certain search terms or the websites behind them.
In different political circumstances, Google also notifies users of its German, French and US services when it blocks access to material such as banned Nazi sites in Europe.
But doing the Chinese Government’s bidding is always going to be problematic and doing business with China shows no sign of changing their political system, as market and engagement advocates once regularly claimed. If anything China demonstrates that *free enterprise* doesn’t need democratic freedom to flourish, in fact it rather prefers a compliant populace.
And I have to wonder whether the search term “Rod Donald” + Tibet flag will be allowed in China.
January 26th, 2006 at 1:11 pm
Up until recently Google has been a white knight of the Internet daring to make unprecedented user-focussed advances to the online experience. But recently things _are_ changing.. they’re still the best choice, the most generous provider and the most sleekest option on the web, but with such enormous power they deserve close scrutiny. They’re too full of secrets.
There’s a list of 10 things in the GOogle “Corporate Philosophy” at http://www.google.com/intl/en/corporate/tenthings.html
Let’s consider deviations from them:
1. Focus on the user and all else will follow.
Tick.
2. It’s best to do one thing really, really well.
They’re talking about search, which is no longer the only thing they offer. By a long way! Still, this is not inherantly bad, just a deviation from company philosophy.
3. Fast is better than slow.
Tick, assuming you have broadband. Most of Google’s services are tailored for broadband, and do not work in the ways intended on dialup speed connections. See Gmail and Google Earth/Maps.
4. Democracy on the web works.
What, even in China? BZZZZT.
5. You don’t need to be at your desk to need an answer.
Google for mobile is still unrealistic for most people needing an answer.
6. You can make money without doing evil.
What, even in China? BZZZZT.
7. There’s always more information out there.
Whose? While Google are taking initiatives to make information more accessible for its users, they’re also putting a lot of effort into knowing a lot about YOU. Who is the information for? BZZZZT for pushy snooping.
8. The need for information crosses all borders.
Uh huh, like the one in China? BZZZZT.
9. You can be serious without a suit.
Keynoting at CES, Larry Page or Sergey Brin (can’t remember which) wore jeans, sneakers and a white lab coat. Um, bzzt? This “philosophy” is just a reaction to IBM.
10. Great just isn’t good enough.
This is a bit dangerous. What is “good” enough? This isn’t just a magic statement that means they can do better than great.
Most of all, infamously,
Don’t be evil
Google need to keep an eye on themselves.
January 26th, 2006 at 2:52 pm
They really ought to admit that their real philosophy is much simpler: “let’s make lots of money!”
Anyway, I refuse to accept that a company which primarily provides an efficient tool for wasting ones employers time is that important. Look at it this way - how much of a typical annual salary goes to Toyota, or whoever built your car? - quite a lot. How much goes to your mobile telephone provider? - less, but still significant. How much goes to Google? I’ve never bought anything from a paid Google link, so in my case it’s a big zero…
Still, I’m thinking of putting a banner on my site saying “Fuck the Chinese Government - long live Free Tibet and the Falun Gong!”. This will make the new Google.cn site deindex it I think. If everyone puts this on their pages the “pages indexed” should decline nicely. Can anyone translate it into Chinese?
January 26th, 2006 at 6:16 pm
“In different political circumstances, Google also notifies users of its German, French and US services when it blocks access to material such as banned Nazi sites in Europe.”
In other words, Google had already sold out freedom of speech some time ago, with no comment from leftists because the censorship was aimed rightwards. After everybody remained silent about Google censoring information at the bidding of the French and German governments, why would Google consider even for a second telling the Chinese govt to fuck off? Hypocrisy cuts both ways.
January 26th, 2006 at 8:29 pm
I’ve never bought anything from a paid Google link, so in my case it’s a big zero…
That’s not the point, you don’t have to buy anything for Google to earn a buck. You just click on an advertisers link - and Google go to great lengths to match you up with paid advertts. Consider that a large fraction of the internets entire advertising budget ends up with Google… that is serious, purchase-a-small-african-nation money. Their revenue is more or less guaranteed, fixed costs are minimal, it is (almost) perfectly scalable.. almost the perfect business model.
Anyway, the danger with Google is that they are beholden to their shareholders and there will always come a point where economic pressures override their latent social conscience. Nevertheless, I hope that their ‘warning message’ is a big, red, banner saying “CONTENT HAS BEEN RESTRICTED BY YOUR CORRUPT RULERS”. That would work for me.
January 27th, 2006 at 12:00 am
Apologies if this appears twice, I posted a few hours back but that one doesn’t seem to have turned up.
“…Google also notifies users of its German, French and US services when it blocks access to material such as banned Nazi sites in Europe.”
Right there is where the rot set in. Google censored sites at the behest of European governments and the left had nothing to say in defence of free speech, because it was the right copping the censorship. But having become censors on behalf of the French and German govts, why would Google’s management hesitate even for a second to become censors for the Chinese govt? They’re businessmen, not hypocrites.
January 27th, 2006 at 1:10 pm
Frog and readers,
please excuse me for being a cynical old bag, but really! Such naivety!!
Businesses engage in censorship all the time, especially media businesses.
We don’t experience as much of this in NZ, but in other countries it is common for journalism to be rampantly left or right-wing slanted. Whole newspapers supported the political positions of say, historically, Francois Mitterrand, or Margaret Thatcher, or more recently, Bill Clinton and now Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Exposing the biases to which one adheres is a quite new convention, one to which Google has to be applauded for pursuing. They are a breath of fresh air by comparison to the Rupert Murdoch’s, Kerry Packer’s, and Fairfax family media megabusinesses.
And I do beleive that some naughty topics are censored to **** and back again on our own dear frogblog, so let’s all get down off our littcrit horses and get back to appreciating that Google is at least keeping some of it’s competition honest!
January 27th, 2006 at 1:55 pm
It looks like the search you were asking about doesn’t come off too badly:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22Rod+Donald%22+%2B+Tibet+flag
http://www.google.co.nz/search?hl=en&q=%22Rod+Donald%22+%2B+Tibet+flag
http://www.google.cn/search?hl=zh-CN&q=%22Rod+Donald%22+%2B+Tibet+flag
Of course, looking at google from within China may be a lot different to looking at google.cn from elsewhere, but compare:
http://images.google.co.nz/images?q=tiananmen%20square
http://images.google.cn/images?q=tiananmen%20square
Then again there are other possible explanations for those differences, eg images.google.cn might only find images on or linked from pages that are hosted in China.
January 27th, 2006 at 11:27 pm
Hard to know what effect the different character sets have too. Are they blocking searches made in Chinese only? Or both? It would be useful to know under exactly what conditions they operate.
January 29th, 2006 at 3:16 pm
good points katie..esp in reference to internal censorship on frogblog…
my comments are often edited/altered…..here on frog…and for no apparent reason….under some undefined/unclear/unspoken criterea…
oh…psycho….your comments would be delayed bcause you are on the same ‘list’ as me…..meaning all comments are stopped and read/edited before release…
so ..i agree it is a tad rich of frog to be banging on about free speech..especially that freedom of speech within a political context/orgamisation….eh..?
of course..there are doubts that this comment will ‘get through’….
(my comment/links on the leadership issue was posted hours ago..still to appear….frustrating..eh..?..and on one of those ‘naughty topics’ referred to by katie..eh..?
and yes..it does hobble/censor debate…
and i.m.h.o…..is very ‘ungreen’ in practice…
phil(whoar.co.nz)
January 30th, 2006 at 5:07 pm
Cutfoldglue: Yes, but at the end of the day, end-users have to spend money to make the advertising thing work out. Google gets a large chunk of the worlds net advertising it’s true (USD3.1bln) - but that makes them #541 in US companies on turnover. The giant share price is based on a possibly mistaken idea that in the future people will spend *much* more money through the net and that Google (rather than some other companies) will own that money.
BTW, does anyone know how the Chinese censorship thing works. I don’t think its a blocklist of words - I think the Chinese government asks for a site to be blocked. Otherwise, I’d suggest everyone puts a banner on their site with “Free Tibet! Support the Falun Gong! Trotsky woulda kicked Mao’s ass!”
August 26th, 2008 at 8:11 pm
nice to see this
http://www.google.co.nz/search?hl=en&q=%22Rod+Donald%22+%2B+Tibet+flag
and have one of the great image here
http://images.google.cn/images?q=tiananmen%20square
I feel yes to only democratic freedom can flourish more to China.
Cool banner ““Free Tibet! Support the Falun Gong! Trotsky woulda kicked Mao’s ass!” Richard your thought, I appreciate.
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