Q: When it comes to providing images and video, the corporate attitude of Baidu will be put to the test in respect to how it handles matters such as adult content, for example. How are you planning to address such issues?
Li: Baidu has already adopted several measures to control such content. When searching images, for example, our portal allows users to choose whether to display adult content or not. By default, the portal is set "not to display adult content" (*1).
(*1) As of Feb 2, 2008, the portal was set "to allow adult content" by default when I confirmed it from my PC.
Q: Tell us about your stance concerning intellectual properties (IP). When I searched for some Japanese artists using the "MP3 search" capability of the Chinese version of Baidu in 2007, a number of tracks were found. When I searched again this time, however, no tracks were found. Is that because you have placed some controls on songs by foreign artists and record companies?
Li: We remove relevant files if we receive complaints from their right owner companies claiming they are "illegal." Our Chinese version portal processes MP3 search capability in accordance with Chinese law. Likewise, we will operate each service in our Japanese version portal in accordance with Japanese law, of course.
Q: Yahoo! and Google have been facing IP issues. Do you think Baidu may also have to deal with similar issues in the future?
Li: In my opinion, Baidu is not likely to face these issues as much as Yahoo! and Google. I think Yahoo! and Google will be confronted by IP issues and settle them ahead of us.
Q: In the case of Google, controversy was stirred up over so-called "Google Censorship," through which Google arbitrarily tampered with search results. Will Baidu possibly introduce similar technology?
Li: Whether users can search for what they are looking for when they access Baidu; this is what we give the most weight to. If Baidu successfully allows users to find what they are really after, they will access Baidu again and again after that.
If Baidu added certain controls to search results and made it so users were unable to find what they are supposed to, that would be a loss for users and even Baidu itself. On the other hand, if Baidu enables users to find what they can't find on other search portals, it will work as one of Baidu's advantages when competing with other search engines in Japan, I suppose.
Baidu is committed to doing its best to enable our portal to display the search results suited to what users are looking for.
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