Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) getting more shut down in China hurts businesses in the country, Shaun Rein told Bloomberg in a recent interview.
The China Market Research managing director was asked about the increasing strikes of the Chinese government on Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and particularly a hit the tech giant took to its services this week ahead of the Tiananmen Square Massacre anniversary. According to Rein, the search giant being blocked by the Chinese government, especially as anniversaries of sensitive events are close, is expected by people in the country.
He added that his company has had a difficult time using the services of world’s biggest search engine for the last 10 days and that they have actually resorted to using other means of communication because they cannot access their emails which are run using Google services.
Asked whether cracking down on Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) services is hurting businesses in China mainly because the company’s services are ubiquitous, Rein said that it does. He added that the Chinese government needs to rethink their policies regarding internet access because lack of access to the web is hurting both foreign and domestic businesses in the country.
He cites Tencent as an example of a company being hurt by the government’s crackdown on Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL). According to Rein, Tencent has become larger than Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) in Indonesia. Whenever Tencent cannot use the services of the Mountain View, California-based search giant, he said that it “stifles their ability to become true global players and make money for Chinese shareholders.”
Meanwhile, the China Market Research executive was also asked whether these difficulties Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is facing is a case where the “old guard” of the country is trying to keep the world out and the “new guard” who are opening up the country is losing in this battle. According to Rein, President Xi Jinping was initially seen as a reformer and he has lived up to the title but not in the way people outside of China initially thought. He has reformed his government, the executive noted, but he has been very wary about the technical side of the country. He added that there is a lot of distrust in the country today for Americans and American companies.
Shareholders of Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) includes Stanley Druckenmiller’s Duquesne Capital which has 259,610 shares valued at $289 million. David Forster’s And Peter Wilton’s Ibis Capital Partners also owns 19,916 shares valued at $22 million by the end of the first quarter. Joho Capital managed by Robert Karr also owns 84,063 shares in the tech giant by the end of March.
Disclosure: None
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