Google is reportedly planning its return to mainland China as early as this fall, specifically hoping to launch a Chinese version of the Google Play Store. It also hopes to seek approval for Android Wear-based wearables in China.
As a part of the agreement that Google is hoping to reach, it would obey the country's laws, including blocking apps that the Chinese government has some objection to. Of course, Google hoping to return to China is not secret.
"China is obviously one of the biggest markets out there," said now Google CEO Sundar Pichai in February in an interview with Forbes. "If we can figure out a model by which we can serve those users, it would be a privilege to do so. So I don't think of China as a black hole. I see it as a huge opportunity in which we are playing as an enabling platform today and hopefully we have a chance to offer other services in the future."
The Chinese Google Play Store would only work on devices running the new Android Marshmallow operating system and would comply with restrictions imposed by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in China.
Google first pulled out of China in 2010, moving its Chinese search engine to Hong Kong after a number of cyber-attacks on Google originated in China. Google also said following the attacks that it would stop censoring content on the Chinese version of Google. This essentially cut Google off from the Chinese market.
To launch the new Play Store, Google is seeking partnerships with local companies. Of course, the move could be difficult, even for Google, with competitors like Baidu and Tencent controlling the majority of app distribution in China. Not only that, but Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi has even launched its own app store.
Of course, while it's almost certain that Google is planning on reentering China, the exact timing of that move is unknown. It is also likely that Google's move into China will be met with severe backlash by others for it seemingly having softened its stance on censorship. Despite this, Google views the Play Store as very different from its search offerings, with search being more about providing information and the Play Store including content that is already curated and tailored toward specific users.
Via: USA Today
