Google Map Impasse Resolved With New JV 谷歌地图风波解决

By newsdoug on June 27, 2011

Google back on the China map I’ve probably written perhaps a bit too much about Google’s (Nasdaq: GOOG) ongoing clash with China over its mapping service, but in this instance I think the case merits the extra attention because 1) this is Google and China we’re talking about, and 2) the case has much broader implications for China’s future approach towards the Internet, which appears to be growing more flexible. Chinese media are reporting that a Google joint venture that would include its China mapping business has officially received government approval, paving the way for the venture to be licensed and for Google to keep operating the service under new rules that require such licensing. (Chinese article) Many will recall that this impasse dates back to the spring, when Google failed to submit a license application before a state-mandated deadline, leading many, including myself, to predict its imminent withdrawal from the market. (previous post) But clearly both Google and Beijing were eager to avoid another high-profile clash similar to the one that made global headlines last year when Google ended up withdrawing from the China search market over objections to Beijing’s strict rules on self-censorship. In this case, the sticking point appears to have been the requirement that foreigners could only participate in China’s online mapping space via joint ventures. But after months of talks, the two sides reached a compromise that saw Google adhere to the joint venture rule in principal while effectively keeping control of the service by owning the big majority of the joint venture’s shares. This new willingness by Beijing to compromise will come as welcome news to foreign Web firms, giving them flexibility to follow China’s tough rules while also doing what makes business and moral sense for them from a broader global perspective. Chinese firms could also benefit in the long run, as they can ride on the coattails of newer more flexible precedents set down by the big foreign players.

Bottom line: Beijing and Google’s compromise over Google’s map service marks the beginning of a more flexible approach by China to its heavy-handed regulation of the Internet.

我可能写了太多有关谷歌<GOOG.O>中国地图服务争端的文章，但这一次的情况值得我们给予更多关注。因为首先，这是谷歌和中国之间的事；其次，这对中国未来如何对待互联网有着重要影响，而中国对互联网企业的态度似乎正变得更有弹性。据中国媒体报导，提供谷歌地图服务的一家谷歌合资公司已得到政府正式批准，这为谷歌拿到中国地图业务牌照，继续在新规则下开展该业务铺平了道路。很多人还记得，谷歌与中国的争执开始于春季，当时谷歌未能在规定的截止日期前提交牌照申请，让包括我在内的很多人都觉得，谷歌即将退出这块市场。但显而易见的是，谷歌和中国政府都不想把事情弄大，不想重复去年谷歌高调退出中国搜索引擎市场时的局面。在地图服务方面，中国政府要求，外国企业只能通过合资公司提供地图服务。但经历了几个月的谈判後，谷歌和中国政府都做出了让步，谷歌原则上同意中国的要求，但谷歌通过持有合资企业大部分股份，实际上依然掌控着这项业务。北京新表现出的妥协意愿对外国网络公司来说可是好消息，这让他们可以灵活地遵守中国的严格制度，同时还能按照国际道德标准做生意。长期看来，中国企业也会从外国公司提供的先例中受益。

一句话：中国政府和谷歌在地图服务方面做出的妥协，标志着中国政府开始对一向严密控制的互联网采取灵活对待策略。