Bing turns off China search suggestions for 30 days

Beijing, Dec 17 (EFE).- Microsoft search engine Bing announced Friday the paralysis of its search suggestion service for 30 days “by order of related government agencies following Chinese laws,” according to the country’s media.

In its statement, Bing spoke about its commitment toward compliance with Chinese regulations and “the right to information of its users to the extent permitted by applicable laws,” without giving further details on the matter.

The search engine page was at times inaccessible in the country on Thursday and Friday, prompting comments on Chinese social media platform Weibo, where the label “Bing cannot be opened” reached 690,000 visits.

The page is already operational, but does not offer search suggestions when typing, contrary to Bing in other countries.

The online search market in China is dominated by Chinese services such as Baidu, which has a market share of about 70 percent, or Sogou, which controls 16.8 percent, according to market analysis company MarketMe China.

Google is inaccessible in the country, where Bing has a market share of approximately 2 percent, placing it as the most successful foreign search engine operating in China. EFE

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