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Google Nailed For Copying Sohu Software
David Utter
Staff Writer
2007-04-09
 Security News RSS Feed
Google has been caught appropriating software developed by Chinese search engine Sohu.com for the purpose of easing the way for typing Chinese characters into an application.
The rollout of Google software in China hit a wall as the company was forced to apologize to Sohu and Internet users over its "leveraging some non-Google database resources" that came from Sohu.
A Reuters report said Sohu engineers discovered that Google had implemented Sohu technology in its product. Likewise, Internet users in China observed how Google's 'Pinyin Input Method Editor' acted a lot like Sohu's application.
An AP story about Google's software prestidigitation noted Google's first claim that their software suggestions came from searches performed on their search engine.
The company later backtracked and apologized in a statement. "We are willing to face up to our mistake, and offer an apology to users and to the Sohu company," Google said.
Their application in question suggests Chinese characters after the user has input a few letters. Some of the likely options for characters were drawn from third-party sources, including Sohu's, leading to the issue.
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Tags: China, Google, Sohu, Pinyin
About the Author:
David Utter is a business and technology writer for SecurityProNews and WebProNews.
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