Microsoft suspends Bing auto-complete at China's behest

Microsoft is the last overseas search engine left in China, but the company is increasingly uncomfortable in the regime.

The company has already decided to shut down LinkedIn China due to “significantly more challenging operating environment and greater compliance requirements in China”.

Now the company is facing more interference from the Chinese government, after reportedly being told to suspend auto-suggest functions in the search engine in China for 30 days.

The order is reportedly from a “relevant government agency” according to Reuters.

China has been clamping down on large internet companies in the country over the last year and has said it wants platforms to more actively promote core socialist values.

“Bing is a global search platform and remains committed to respecting the rule of law and users’ right to access information,” Bing said on its Chinese search site yesterday.