Ongoing negotiations between Google and the Chinese government seem to be bearing fruit, as the company is hiring for its China operations and selling ads again. From Business Week:
“Things have stabilized,” said Vincent Kobler, managing director at EmporioAsia Leo Burnett in Shanghai, which buys advertising on behalf of clients on Google and Chinese market leader Baidu Inc. Still, Google needs to resolve its future in China quickly to avoid falling further behind Baidu, he said.
Six weeks after Google said it planned to stop censoring its Web site in the world’s largest Internet market, the company is recruiting engineers, managers and sales staff. The prospect of Google’s exit, which Kobler said initially boosted advertisers’ spending at Baidu, has receded as executives negotiate ways to keep its business in the country.
“Customers are considering Google for future ad campaigns again,” said Steven Chang, chief executive officer for China at ZenithOptimedia Group Ltd., which buys advertising on Google’s site on behalf of companies.
Clients are returning after Chang said more than 20 percent of Google’s customers in China probably switched to alternative paid-search providers in the wake of the U.S. company’s Jan. 12 announcement that it may exit the Chinese market.
