Comment Re:Google can afford to respect local law for now (Score 2, Insightful) 75
Euro-American consensus is only the tip of the iceberg.
There are governments that have misgivings about the WWW itself. Considering convenience issues for an American corporation may have an element of humor that we in the USA fail to appreciate.
I think it is naive for Google to think that countries who can't reach a consensus on biological weapons or the disposal of hazardous waste will seriously consider this privacy request.
Google wants all the data they can get-- and have profited handsomely from it. Now they face the same challenges that Standard Oil, United Fruit, ITT and, more recently, Microsoft have had to come to grips with:
If you intend to do multinational business, you'll need to comply with the laws and customs of each nation.
and, P.S., there is no privacy agreement that can't be overridden by a "national security" imperative.
There are governments that have misgivings about the WWW itself. Considering convenience issues for an American corporation may have an element of humor that we in the USA fail to appreciate.
I think it is naive for Google to think that countries who can't reach a consensus on biological weapons or the disposal of hazardous waste will seriously consider this privacy request.
Google wants all the data they can get-- and have profited handsomely from it. Now they face the same challenges that Standard Oil, United Fruit, ITT and, more recently, Microsoft have had to come to grips with:
If you intend to do multinational business, you'll need to comply with the laws and customs of each nation.
and, P.S., there is no privacy agreement that can't be overridden by a "national security" imperative.
