Google`s China internet license faces expiration this month

Google Inc.`s internet service license in China may expire at the end of this month, adding pressure on the company to resolve a censorship row with the government that could result in its pullout from the country.

Licenses for Chinese internet service providers are "generally up for renewal this month," Jessica Powell, a Tokyo-based spokeswoman at Google, said by phone yesterday. She declined to say if the comment applied to Google or if the U.S. company plans to renew its license.

The owner of the world`s most-popular search engine in January said it may exit China pending, talks with the government on a plan to stop censoring search results in its Google.cn site, after claiming it was targeted by cyber attacks from within the country. Failure to end the dispute may hand more sales to rivals including Baidu Inc. in the world`s biggest internet market.

Chinese internet regulators require service providers to renew their licenses annually as a way of ensuring operators are in compliance with rules, said Damien Bailey, a partner at law firm Simmons & Simmons in Hong Kong.



Google should continue to abide by Chinese laws, which the company agreed to do when it initially started services in the nation, Yao Jian, spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, said yesterday at a press conference, without saying if the company needs to renew its license.

Google`s advertisers in China are being advised to switch to rivals including Baidu and business partners are exploring alternatives as speculation grows the Mountain View, California- based company will shut its main operations in the country. An outcome in Google`s talks with Chinese authorities is expected "soon," chief executive officer Eric Schmidt said last week.

In 2006, Google agreed to comply with requirements to filter its search results on the Google.cn site to expand operations in China, where the ruling Communist Party restricts information it deems unfavorable.

Google has drawn up detailed plans to shut its search engine in China and is "99.9 percent" certain of going ahead with the closure, the Financial Times reported March 13, citing a person it didn`t name.

Chinese regulators told some of Google`s biggest partners on March 12 that they should plan for the company`s retreat from the country, the New York Times reported on Monday, citing a person with knowledge of the notice. It indicated negotiations with the government had reached an impasse, the report said.

(Bloomberg)