14 DAY TRIAL // With the Internet becoming more affordable and more available all around the world, it is proving a disruptive force in countless ways. Unfortunately, some regimes, specifically the ones used to controlling public opinion and media, don't take too kindly to this type of disruption and try to do what they do best, censor and block Internet access. Google, with so many services available in so many different countries, runs into this problem quite often. In fact, Google says its services are blocked in 25 of the 100 countries it operates in. It doesn't specify in which, though.
"China is the most polarizing example, but it is not the only one. Google products -- from search and Blogger to YouTube and Google Docs -- have been blocked in 25 of the 100 countries where we offer our services. In addition, we regularly receive government requests to restrict or remove content from our properties. When we receive those requests, we examine them closely to ensure they comply with the law, and if we think they’re overly broad, we attempt to narrow them down," Rachel Whetstone, vice president, Global Communications and Public Affairs at Google, wrote.
Google says that Search is one of its cleanest services. It rarely has to remove entries from its search results page and usually does so for a limited set of content types. It removes results to underage adult content, and links to sites that may harm your computer (spam or malware). It also removes other types of content in accordance with local laws.
However, it only does so for non-political material and Google says it is very careful not to get involved in political censorship. This type of censorship is what drove it out of China last month. When it does censor results, it does it in a transparent way. It shows users that a number of results have been removed and provides them with a link to chillingeffects.org to show them why.
When it comes to other services, specifically user-generated content platforms like Blogger, Picasa and YouTube, policies vary with the service. For example, Blogger allows users to post legal adult content, be it text, photos or even videos. The same rules don't apply to YouTube, though, which has stricter policies with this type of content. The stricter policies are applied to Google's ad products.
"These policies are always evolving. Decisions to allow, restrict or remove content from our services and products often require difficult judgment calls. We have spirited debates about the right course of action, whether it’s about our own content policies or the extent to which we resist a government request. In the end, we rely on the principles that sit at the heart of everything we do," Whetstone concluded.