Yahoo China Wins Case Against Rival

Yahoo China has won a Chinese court case it brought against rival Beijing Sanjiwuxian Internet Technology for unfair competition.

In September of this year, Yahoo China filed suit against Beijing Sanjiwuxian, which was founded by a former Yahoo China general manager, charging the company with unfair competition. Yahoo China is operated by Alibaba.com, the Chinese Internet company that took over Yahoo’s Chinese operations in 2005.

The suit charged Beijing Sanjiwuxian, which operates the Qihoo.com Web portal, with offering software, called 360safe, that reports the Yahoo Toolbar as malware and advises users to uninstall it. Yahoo Toolbar is offered by Yahoo China for free and includes antivirus protection as well as access to Yahoo services, such as Yahoo’s search engine and Yahoo Mail.

The Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court ruled in favor of Yahoo China, and ordered Beijing Sanjiwuxian to stop engaging in anticompetitive activities and to compensate Yahoo China for unspecified damages and legal costs, Alibaba said. Beijing Sanjiwuxian must also make a public statement that “clarifies all incorrect allegations” made against Yahoo China.

Beijing Sanjiwuxian executives could not be reached for comment.

-Sumner Lemon, IDG News Service (Singapore Bureau)

Related Links:

• Foreign Web Firms Struggling in China

• Yahoo China Chief Throws in Towel After 6 Weeks

• Alibaba CEO Ma: Yahoo China to Be Community-Based Portal

Check out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage.