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@ 2012/11/14Google is finding it difficult to get back into the Chinese market because of disruptions to its service which appear to come from outside forces.
According to Datamation the disruptions started on Friday, according to the company's "transparency report" website when users said that Google's search engine, Gmail and Google Play store stopped working.
Google said that its own statistics showed a sharp decline in traffic from China, and the problem didn't appear to be with its equipment.
Unlike previous problems, which could be put down to local hackers, fingers have been pointed at China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
China's internet censorship efforts have been increased ahead of the 18th Party Congress, a meeting of top Communist Party leaders in Beijing that began on Thursday.
The meeting is unveiling a new slate of top party leaders, making it a sensitive time in the eyes of Beijing.
The belief is that the government is throttling the web to kill off access to foreign media articles about corruption and wealth in China spurred by the party congress and the fall of Bo Xilai.
The New York Times and Bloomberg News were unavailable in China this year just as each ran articles describing the wealth accumulated by China's leaders.
Even VPN operators, such as the Witopia service, in recent weeks also have said they have been blocked.
According to Datamation the disruptions started on Friday, according to the company's "transparency report" website when users said that Google's search engine, Gmail and Google Play store stopped working.
Google said that its own statistics showed a sharp decline in traffic from China, and the problem didn't appear to be with its equipment.
Unlike previous problems, which could be put down to local hackers, fingers have been pointed at China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
China's internet censorship efforts have been increased ahead of the 18th Party Congress, a meeting of top Communist Party leaders in Beijing that began on Thursday.
The meeting is unveiling a new slate of top party leaders, making it a sensitive time in the eyes of Beijing.
The belief is that the government is throttling the web to kill off access to foreign media articles about corruption and wealth in China spurred by the party congress and the fall of Bo Xilai.
The New York Times and Bloomberg News were unavailable in China this year just as each ran articles describing the wealth accumulated by China's leaders.
Even VPN operators, such as the Witopia service, in recent weeks also have said they have been blocked.
