Goojje not to change logo despite Google objection

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IANS | 10 Feb, 2010
Chinese web portal Goojje has said it "will not change" its logo despite US search giant Google's threat to sue it over copyright infringement, according to a media report Wednesday.

Goojje's logo resembles the logo of Google Inc and also bears a paw print sign like that of Baidu Inc, the biggest Internet search engine in China and Google Inc's arch rival in the country.

The website's interface also imitates those adopted by Google Inc and Baidu Inc, but falls short of the copyright sign and a link indicating the website's licence number issued by the Industry and Information Technology Ministry.

Google has sent the operators of Goojje 'a cease and desist' letter through a Beijing-based law firm, demanding that they stop copying Google's logo by Monday or the company will probably file a lawsuit against them.

Goojje, however, kept its logo and interface unchanged as of Tuesday afternoon.

"The website is our team's achievement," Huang Jiongxuan, the website's founder, told China Daily over the phone. "It's impossible that we would close it down."

The team has invested 30,000 yuan ($4,400) for the website's set-up, said Huang.

The website has yet to return a profit and Huang is now relying on his family for a living.

But he shrugged off the threat from Google Inc.

"A lot of lawyers have offered to be our counsel for free, and we also have many supporters," he said.

Huang, 24, and seven other team members, launched the website Jan 14, a day after Google announced the company would quit the Chinese market.

These young men's overnight efforts have made a splash in China's cyber world, partly because of the breaking news of Google Inc's exit claims and the website's name - Goojje.

Its second syllable, "jje", is the same as the Chinese word for "older sister", while that of Google, "gle", sounds like another Chinese word for "older brother".

The website is designed as a search engine, but experts said it produces search results by simply combining those of Google Inc and Baidu Inc, which means Goojje does not have its own search technology.

The website had an average page view of about three million in the first few days after the launch, said Huang. The number has fallen to two million lately, which is still remarkable for any website in the early days since a launch.