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Google & Baidu Targeted in China’s Crackdown on Pornography

posted on January 5, 2009

Google China; BaiduChina has launched a major crackdown on pornography today, and is asking Google and Baidu to do their part. Pornography is banned in China, but government officials are still struggling to block pornographic websites that are based abroad.

Despite pornography being blocked, both Google and Baidu are still returning search results that include pornographic links. China is now calling them out on their failed attempt to do their part in the crackdown against pornography.

In an attempt to get Google, Baidu and other websites to comply, the Chinese government released a statement on their website saying that “violators will be severely punished.” What exactly that punishment is remains unclear.

According to Cui Jin, a Google spokeswoman in China, Google is already in full compliance with Chinese law, and is not serving an pornographic links.

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5 Reasons Why Not to Be Shocked by Microsoft Layoffs

posted on January 2, 2009

The big question isn’t, is Microsoft planning to cut 15,000 employees from its workforce? Nope, the big question is, why is everyone so shocked?

Yahoo just gave pink-slips as Christmas presents and even Google had to scale back on its staff, so why is there so much shock at the prospect of Microsoft following suit?

All you have to do is consider the facts:

  1. Windows Vista was a bust, and MSFT is moving quickly to get Windows 7 to the market.
  2. Windows Live Search still can’t catch Google–and failed attempts to buy Yahoo cost the company time and money.
  3. Who really needs Microsoft Office, when we can either download free alternatives or, in my opinion even better, move to the cloud?

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Using IE6? Google Thinks You’re a Loser!

posted on January 2, 2009

If you’re reading this post using Internet Explorer 6, Google wants you to know that you’re a loser.

OK, maybe I’m paraphrasing a little (lot), but according to Ars Technica, Google is trying to convince Gmail users to switch from IE6 to a faster browser.

With a simple "Get faster Gmail" message (which only appears in IE, and not in Safari, Firefox, or Chrome), Google is luring users of its e-mail service to a support page which explains that IE is slow at running Gmail.

When you get to the support page, you’re encouraged to download either Firefox or Google’s own Chrome. There’s a brief mention of IE8′s beta release, but we suspect that was only added after this news first broke. Google’s not shy in trying to get you to switch browsers either:

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Make Marketing Pilgrim Part of Your New Year Resolutions

posted on January 1, 2009

Happy New Year!

I hope that 2009 started well for you and I hope it only gets better from here on out. While you’re making your list of new year resolutions, why not include Marketing Pilgrim?

Don’t Miss Out in 2009!

In 2009 we plan to continue bringing you the very best internet marketing news, analysis, and opinion. In addition, we’ll pass on exclusive discounts and give away some fabulous prizes–2008′s prizes included iPods and Netbook computers.

So, why not take this time to ensure that you’re signed-up to receive alerts from Marketing Pilgrim? There are two easy ways to ensure you never miss a post.