Techies and non-techies alike are all getting a little excited this week after news broke that Google will provide search services via a server it has set up in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, according to Chinese state media.
This comes a month after Eric Schmidt (the executive chairman of Alphabet, Google's parent company) came to the Beijing stop of popular international startup conference TechCrunch and dropped the bombshell that: 'The interesting thing is that Google never really left China…In fact, we do hope to provide services here…’
Google in China? Does this mean we’ll all be able to search VPN-free forever more? Well, perhaps, but not just yet.
Google abruptly ceased most of its Mainland China operations in 2010 following a disagreement with the Chinese government over the censorship of search results, and it seems those disagreements haven’t been resolved. But some much-welcomed news is that Google Play is expected to return to Android phones in the Chinese Mainland 'as early as next year', according to Shanghai Daily.
Hopes were first raised in December 2014 when Google registered Pengji - a firm dealing with online search and e-mail - in the pilot free-trade zone according to Shanghai state media outlet The Paper.
Despite Google stopping most Mainland China-based services in 2010 and moving servers to Hong Kong, the company has pointed out that it never really abandoned the country. Around 500 employees stayed on the Mainland, and the Google Analytics service has been operating out of Chinafor years. In September this year Huawei unveiled the Nexus 6P, their flagship Android phone which was produced in partnership with Google.
At the Beijing conference, Schmidt also explained that Google has been in constant communication with the Chinese government about the company’s presence in the country. Unlikely bedfellows you might think, but the search giant was clearly never silly enough to give up on China, and visa versa.
There’s been no official word from Google China on these latest developments – and so the rumours and speculation will go on. While we shouldn’t expect to get back to Googlewhacking within the week, the start of search operations on Chinese soil will be music to many ears - and hopefully a sign of things to come.