Scandal Puts A Hurtin' On Baidu

Baidu has been the subject of some scandalous accusations lately. As a result, stock has plummeted, and so have advertising revenues for the company.

A Little Background

Unlicensed medical outfits were allegedly selling bunk treatments and paying for high rankings on Baidu. People went to these destinations to buy their medicine at ridiculously high prices, presumably thinking they would be getting legitimate results on the top of the search engine, but were conned into paying for meds that didn't even work. This inevitably led to the results mentioned above.

Now What?


"We have removed the key words of all four clients mentioned in the report and have begun to double-check the licenses of all other hospitals and pharmacies on our client list."

What If?

It is interesting that the blame seems to be placed squarely on Baidu's shoulders. Could something like this happen to our own number one search engine?

"I doubt Google validates the medical licenses of doctors who advertise for medical terms,"
Baidu may have taken a hit from all of this, but it is likely still secure as China's leader in search, with over 60% of the Chinese market share efforts to improve international search, it could eventually add China to its basket of eggs one day. Particularly if Baidu suffers from more scandals in the future. For now, the throne is Baidu's to lose.