Google turns to China in latest Web video investment

Google might have purchased YouTube for $1.65 billion last year, but that certainly hasn't marked the end of the Mountain View, Calif. company's forays into online video. Last week, Bloomberg reported that Google would be investing in Shenzhen Xunlei Network Technology, a video download service based in China. Google operates its own Chinese search engine, and unlike its American counterpart, it's an underdog: the Beijing-based Baidu holds the largest share of the Chinese search market. Both Google China and Baidu had been looking to expand into online video services over the past month, and Google's investment in Xunlei solidifies that commitment. China, after all, may be on the fast track to surpassing the U.S. as the nation with the most Internet users, according to recent data.

Very little detail has been provided regarding Google's investment in Xunlei other than the fact that the terms of the investment will likely be disclosed in January.



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