Baidu to spend $15 mln to screen search engine results
Shanghai. December 17. INTERFAX-CHINA - Nasdaq-listed Baidu Inc., China's leading search engine, plans to deploy RMB 100 million ($15 million) to expunge illicit material and false information from its search results, state media reported on Dec. 17.
According to the National Business Daily, Baidu will employ both human monitors and computer technology to block material such as pornography, citing comments made by Baidu vice president Shen Haoyu.
According to Shen, Baidu has employed more than 200 employees to screen Internet content since January this year.
To date, Baidu has removed more than 11 million Web pages from its search results.
Meanwhile, Baidu announced the same day that it will deploy RMB 10 million ($1.5 million) to raise awareness of appropriate Internet use but did not provide further details.
The state-owned China Internet Illegal Information Reporting Centre (CIIRC) was founded in 2004 to regulate pornographic Web sites. Baidu has received warnings from CIIRC several times for displaying pornographic content in its search results.
-LX