Hi Guys
Click Here to read the NY times article about Googles withdrawal from China in 2010. Then answer the following question in the comments below.
Examine the case for and against regarding Google’s withdrawal from
mainland China as an ethical decision
(10)
Business ethics is the moral principle that should underpin decision making. If google withdraws from China then this will help them retain a good image as google aims to promote freedom of information, refusing Chinas censorship shows consumers that google sticks to what they say and can increase brand loyalty. However if google withdraws from China then they will lose a large part of the market as there are over one billion people living in China. This can affect potential revenue as google could possibly now be less atractive to potential investors/advertisers. Also if google leaves China then this will leave the chinese population with less options for internet searchers. Which could be argued that google is also going against their aim to promote freedom of information. In conclusion ethically it can be argued as a good decision but googles revenue could potentially fall wich could have an effect on how effective the companies ethical stance is.
ReplyDeleteHi Brenden
DeleteI might have developed your point about leaving China's population with less choice a bit more. Could Google have stayed in the market and tried to promote freedom of information within the rule of law and lobby the government to help China achieve social change? Did they give up too easily? Or is there actually a financial reason for their withdrawal?
DeleteBusiness ethics are moral principles that guide the way a business such as Google behaves. The withdrawal of Google from China could be used as evidence for their ethical stance as they refuse to cooperate with a dictatorial government such as China which refuses to provide their people with freedom of speech and freedom of information. This promotes Google as an ethical firm and increases their reputation which could then lead to an increase in revenue as more companies would want to be associated with Google and so advertisement through Google could increase. However, it can also be argued that Google,s actions are not ethical as their withdrawal leaves Chinese people with "government run" search engine - Baidu. This can be regarded as a decline in Google's behalf to help promote freedom of speech and information in China. Furthermore, it should be kept in mind that when Google entered China in 2006, they were aware that they should abide by the countries' laws and that would include a large amount of censorship. Therefore by opening up in China, Google had accepted these terms and conditions and therefore withdrawing would mean that they are breaking a promise which could therefore bring up the question of whether Google's withdrawal is solely based on ethical decisions. Google could be withdrawing due to low income and by withdrawing from China, their shares went down by only 1% and therefore they found it financially better to withdraw from China rather than remain and receive low income. Therefore Google's withdrawal could be regarded as a financial decision as well. In conclusion, Google could have made this decision due to reasons such as low income. However it should be kept in mind that Google is a large company and could afford staying in China despite the low income. Therefore it's most likely that they withdrew to send a moral message and promote freedom of speech and information.
- good definition, application of what google aims to promote,
ReplyDelete- application of China's population
- evaluation of the effects on Google's image if they remove themselves from China
- could maybe refer more to ethics
7
Good definition
ReplyDeleteApplication is good but could be increased
Good analysis
Evaluation could be more detailed
Conclusion could also be improved
8
Business ethics refer to the moral principle that should underpin decision making. Google declared that it would stop cooperating with the Chinese internet censorship. Ethically, google is against the policy of internet censorship that China has adapted and Google is attempting to negotiate with China to provide a new arrangement containing uncensored search results. However, China is unlikely to negotiate and will not agree on anything that google offers therefore Google should remove itself from mainland china as negotiation is not an option. However, after announcing Google's removal from China, Wall Street announced that China's shares were down by 1% to $584.18. There could be negative repercussions for googles shares and potential revenue. It could be argued that freedom of speech activists could be against Google removing itself as it only leaves a Government run search engine called 'Baidu'. Google could be seen as the only advancement towards a looser censorship regulation for China and with it's removal, China are now free of non-governmental search engines. As a result, investors and potential advertisers on Google could be deterred away from the use of Google for business awareness as it is seen as giving in to China's censorship. Overall, Google could promote s strong message in support of freedom of speech, gaining an ethical business reputation however at the same time, Google could suffer from a decrease in share value and investments as a result of 'abandoning' the people of China and those in China that agree with the stance of Google towards freedom of press.
ReplyDelete