US Cos Won't Attend Government Panel On Internet In China]

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

-------- Original Message --------
Subject:        For IP: US Cos Won't Attend Government Panel On Internet In China
Date:   Wed, 01 Feb 2006 19:41:51 -0500 (EST)
From:   GLIGOR1 () aol com
To:     dave () farber net



Updated:2006-02-01 11:18:58
US Cos Won't Attend Government Panel On Internet In China
Dow Jones
(Updates with Yahoo officials not attending)

WASHINGTON (AP)--Representatives from four powerhouse technology 
companies say they won't attend a U.S. congressional briefing Wednesday 
meant to shine a spotlight on U.S. Internet businesses operating in China.

Critics have been blasting American companies for helping China's 
communist government enforce censorship and silence dissent in return 
for access to a potentially lucrative market.

All four of the companies invited by the Congressional Human Rights 
Caucus - Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO), Yahoo Inc. 
(YHOO) and Google Inc. (GOOG) - won't attend Wednesday's session, said 
Lynne Weil, a congressional spokeswoman.

While attendance at Wednesday's briefing wasn't mandatory, companies 
could be compelled with subpoenas to attend a Feb. 15 hearing on the 
issue, said Rep. Chris Smith, Republican chairman of the House 
International Relations subcommittee on global human rights.

In an interview, the lawmaker criticized U.S. Internet companies, saying 
they were helping China arrest and torture activists and screen 
information from its citizens.

"This is not benign or neutral," Smith said of companies acceding to 
China's demands. "They have an obligation not to be promoting dictatorship."

Microsoft, Cisco and Google said they planned to attend the Feb. 15 
hearing. Yahoo didn't respond to messages left by The Associated Press.

Although Beijing has supported Internet use for education and business, 
it fiercely polices content. Filters block objectionable foreign Web 
sites, and regulations ban what the Chinese consider subversive and 
pornographic content and require service providers to enforce censorship.

Foreign companies have adopted Chinese standards, saying they must obey 
local laws.

At the request of the Chinese government, Microsoft recently shut down 
the Internet journal of a Chinese blogger that discussed politically 
sensitive issues. Google said last week it would filter sensitive topics 
from Web searches in China. Yahoo came under fire last year for 
providing Beijing with e-mail account information for Chinese journalist 
Shi Tao, who later was convicted for violating state secrecy laws.

Microsoft said Tuesday it will endeavor to make blogs available to users 
elsewhere, even if the company decides it is legally obliged to block 
them in a particular country.

Last week, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates said the specter of state 
censorship and the proliferation of software piracy shouldn't deter 
technology companies from doing business in China. As technology 
develops and Chinese innovations multiply, Gates said, those problems 
will dissipate gradually.

In a statement, Google said it would submit a statement for Wednesday's 
briefing.

A Cisco statement said the company "has not designed or marketed 
products for any government to censor Internet content."

(END) Dow Jones Newswires 02-01-061053ET Copyright (c) 2006 Dow Jones & 
Company, Inc.

Copyright (C) 2006 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
2006-02-01 10:53 ET

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