The tension between Google and the Chinese government ratcheted up a notch last night when China blocked Google search and Gmail for an hour.
The government had already told the company to stop porn appearing in its search results, and earlier in the day Xinhua and People’s Daily, the main media outlet for the state and Communist party, had condemned Google, according to the Guardian.
Earlier this week Google had reportedly agreed to filter porn out of its Chinese searches.
Xiao Qiang, the founder of China Digital Times, told the newspaper:
"This is definitely a warning to Google, as well as other foreign companies. It is also a strong warning to Chinese netizens. The government is showing its determination to keep the internet under control."
Google’s head of China operations, Kai-Fu Lee wrote in response to the blockage:
"We have received your feedback, we are just investigating, please be patient and wait for feedback from Google overseas, thanks for your support."
