Baidu Besting Google in China
March 26, 2012
It comes as no surprise that Google is not faring well in China. Digimind reports, “Baidu vs. Google: the Battle of Search engines in China.” (The link is in French; if you don’t read French, run the site through Google’s Translator.)
Baidu is the Chinese search engine that has challenged Google’s market share in that country. Largely because it was willing to cooperate with government censors where Google was not, Baidu has taken the lead there. The write up describes the Chinese engine:
“The engine Baidu was founded in 2000. A simple search engine, it has become a multi-faceted site offering a range of services (a community of Questions / Answers, a ‘Wikipedia’, an instant messaging …). Baidu is to launch just such a new version of its browser.”
Here are the stats behind the battle: Baidu receives over 80% of Chinese queries, as opposed to Google’s 11%. Baidu’s net income last year was up by 88% over the previous year. 88%! Finally, even Google’s measly 2% stake in its rival is gone, jettisoned during the company’s censorship conflict with the Chinese government.
Even though it cost the Goog, we still say it made the right choice in refusing to cave to China’s demands. Sometimes doing the right thing requires some sacrifice.
Stephen E. Arnold, March 26, 2012
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