Despite the Chinese government’s decision to renew Google’s Internet Content Provider license, the company is continuing to run into trouble in that country. The latest problem is that two of Google’s authorized advertising agents have ended their relationships with the corporation.
That’s in no way a good sign for Google. Wang Xing reported that Universal Internet Media and the Xi’an Weihua Network were two out of only 25 authorized advertising agents, and they were also "the major advertising agents for Google in East and Northwest China."
The organizations must have represented a pretty significant percentage of Google’s revenue stream, then, and Google was already doing a poor job of attracting advertisers compared to Baidu.
Plus, it’s necessary to consider whether the exits of Universal Internet Media and the Xi-an Weihua Network will be part of a trend. If they’re successful enough partnering with another company, additional advertisers might follow their lead, either to avoid negative connotations or just pursue bigger audiences.
But Google’s not completely out of allies. Wang Xing wrote, "Cheng Yu, general manager of Zoom Interactive, a Google authorized advertising agent in Beijing, said on Monday his company will continue its partnership with Google."
So Google fans can hope that this is just an isolated incident.