Slashdot Mirror


Google Admits to Using Sohu Database

prostoalex writes "A few days ago a Chinese company, Sohu.com, alleged Google improperly tapped its database for its Pinyin IME product, stirring controversy on whether two databases were similar just due to normal research process. Today Google admitted that its new product for Chinese market 'was built leveraging some non-Google database resources.' 'The dictionaries used with both software from Google and Sohu shared several common mistakes, where Chinese characters were matched with the wrong Pinyin equivalents. In addition, both dictionaries listed the names of engineers who had developed Sohu's Sogou Pinyin IME.'"

5 of 209 comments (clear)

  1. Do no evil? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Google doesn't give a shit whose content they rip off. Rampant youtube copyright violations, intent on cloning the library of Congress without any regard for authors'/publishers' wishes, caching of webpages, you name it. Other peoples' content is their business. Stealing other peoples' content, that is.

  2. Any surprise this was done in China? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    Google may be filled with the best engineers, but once you move out of North America, they know nothing about ethics or morality. I'm not surprised one bit that this was done by Chinese engineers. I hope those engineers get fired and Google probably needs to do a lot better to spread the sense of ethics across all parts of their company, even in those 3rd world countries.

  3. Not a big deal by gaz_hayes · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Good, google admitted it. I bet google contracted a Chinese company to supply them the database though. Apart from that, basically every piece of IP the USA has ever created has been copied by the Chinese and profit has been made. But, that doesnt make it right, and google needs to come 100% clean because if we start doing what the Chinese do to us, then there will be no more good people left in the world...

  4. Re:Do no evil by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

    This is a serious problem when dealing with Chinese companies. Now that Google has opened offices in China and has staffed them with native Chinese people, they're going to have a hard time enforcing western style ideas about copyright and what constitutes "doing no evil".

    Yes of course. All them evil barbaric non christians over there. We need to move our troops from Iraq to continue the learning of real values to all the other horrific countries. I mean look at them, slave labour, child labour, sex slaves etc. And all we and our fine companies ever wanted was a nice profit.

    You are a bigot ass hat.

  5. Re:Is this... by ThePengwin · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    *pats you on the back*

    Its okay, welcome to the internet.