Tom Phillips “China investigates Baidu after death of student who sought cancer cure on internet” http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/may/03/baidu-investigated-in-china-after-death-of-student-who-sought-cancer-cure-on-internet
タイ集団全裸事件を起こして名を馳せたDYMという会社はSEO事業を（も）行っていた*1。さて、今週に入って、サーチ･エンジンの順位操作疑惑が中国のネット界に激震を起こしている。疑惑がかけられているのはサーチ･エンジンそれ自体、中国におけるネット検索の80％を占める「百度」である。
先月、陝西省の魏則西*2という21歳の大学生が「滑膜肉腫（synovial sarcoma）」*3という一種の癌のため死去した。 死に至る数か月の間、彼は北京の「武装警察北京市総隊第二医院（武警二院）」で有効性の疑わしい（殆ど否定的な評価しかない）治療を行っていた。家族はそのために20万元の巨費を投じていた。魏則西が死の直前にネットに書き込んだところによれば、「武警二院 」のその療法は「百度」検索の上位に表示されていた。
ここまで炎上するのは、「百度」の不正疑惑は今年に入ってこれで２回目だということも関係している。「百度」は「貼吧」というテーマ別のＱ＆Ａサイトを行っている。頁のモデレーションをそのテーマについての専門家や専門のNGOが行うということで定評があったが、今年の１月に「血友病」についての「 貼吧」のモデレート権を或る会社に売り渡し、その結果、頁がその会社による「怪しげな医学的アドヴァイス」で埋め尽くされたことが発覚し、「百度」は謝罪に追い込まれた。
Wei Zexi, from Shaanxi province, died on 12 April after undergoing expensive experimental treatment that he had learned about through the search engine of Baidu, China’s answer to Google.On Monday, amid growing public anger, the Communist party’s official mouthpiece, the People’s Daily, attacked Baidu for allegedly promoting potentially dubious medical treatments in its search results in exchange for money*4.
“There have been hospitals making profits at the cost of killing patients who were directed by false advertisements paid at a higher rank in search results,” the newspaper claimed, adding: “With great power comes great responsibility... profit considerations shall not be placed over social responsibility.”
According to reports in the Chinese media, Wei died of synovial sarcoma, a rare form of soft tissue cancer that can affect a person’s legs, arms or torso.
In the months leading up to his death he underwent four rounds of experimental and ultimately unsuccessful treatment at the Second Hospital of the Beijing Armed Police Corps in the Chinese capital, for which his family paid more than 200,000 yuan (£21,000).
The treatment reportedly involved using cells produced by the patient’s immune system to fight the illness*5.
Just weeks before he died, Wei expressed anger at Baidu in an online post in which he said he regretted seeking a cure through the company’s search engine. “Baidu, we did not know how much evil it could do,” Wei wrote, according to state media reports.
There was outrage in China this week as online reports about Wei’s case went viral and Baidu was accused of not doing enough to vet its advertisers.
“[Baidu] makes money by taking lives,” one critic wrote according to Xinhua, which claimed the internet giant made at least 10bn yuan (£1.05bn) last year from advertisements placed by private hospitals.
On Monday, China’s internet watchdog, the Cyberspace Administration of China, announced it was sending a team of investigators to examine what role, if any, Baidu played in the student’s death*6.
The company’s shares slumped by nearly 8% after the announcement of that decision*7.
The so-called “Wei Zexi incident” is the second major controversy Baidu, which enjoys about 80% of China’s search engine market, has faced this year.In January internet users rounded on the company after it emerged that Baidu had sold the rights to run an online group for haemophilia sufferers to a company that then filled it with dubious medical advice.
State media alleged that in pursuit of profits, Baidu had allowed its online health forums to become “flooded with quacks and advertisements for unlicensed hospitals”*8.
「百度」ボイコット運動。「百度」の独占体制が問題であるということで、Googleの復帰を望む声も*11。
Thousands of internet users subsequently announced a boycott of Baidu*9.In a strongly worded editorial Xinhua, China’s official news agency, said Baidu’s reputation had taken a “huge battering” as a result of the two cases*10. They suggested the company valued “monetary gain over the welfare of its users,” it said.
Xinhua also hit out at the company’s “dumb” response to public criticism over its actions.
“From where we are standing, there seems to be a growing disconnect between Baidu and its corporate social responsibility,” it said.
On Tuesday Baidu said it paid “particular vigilance” to its “healthcare vertical” and had “proactively cleaned up the customer base” using measures including the careful screening of potentially misleading adverts.
一方の「武警二院」も「調査」対象に*12。
See also
聶日明「殺死魏則西到底是甚麼」http://news.ifeng.com/a/20160501/48652040_0.shtml
*1:See http://d.hatena.ne.jp/sumita-m/20160312/1457748101
*2:See eg. http://baike.baidu.com/item/%E9%AD%8F%E5%88%99%E8%A5%BF
*3:See eg. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synovial_sarcoma https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%BB%91%E8%86%9C%E8%82%89%E8%85%AB “Soft tissue sarcomas” http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/soft-tissue-sarcoma/pages/introduction.aspx
*4:王石川「魏則西之死、拷問企業責任倫理」http://m.people.cn/n4/2016/0501/c203-6777376.html Wang Shichuan “Commentary: Death of college student raises questions on Baidu’s ethic” http://en.people.cn/n3/2016/0502/c90000-9052118.html
*5:“Baidu faces probe following student's death” http://www.china.org.cn/business/2016-05/03/content_38369699.htm
*6:See “China Focus: Investigation into Baidu after student death” http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2016-05/02/c_135328902.htm
*7:See Minnie Chan “Baidu’s US-traded shares drop nearly 8 per cent after China launches probe over student’s death” http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/1940598/baidus-us-traded-shares-drop-nearly-8-cent-after-china
*8:“Baidu under fire for profiting from medical forums” http://www.china.org.cn/business/2016-01/14/content_37572013.htm also 涂需航、張維、衛詩婕「貼吧利益調査：刪貼業務與広告共生」http://www.bjnews.com.cn/feature/2016/01/13/391353.html 林斐然、王丹「血友病貼吧”被売”百度介入調査」http://www.bjnews.com.cn/feature/2016/01/12/391216.html
*9:See Zheping Huang “Chinese citizens are boycotting search engine Baidu―and praying for Google to come back” http://qz.com/593120/chinese-citizens-are-boycotting-search-engine-baidu-and-praying-for-google-to-come-back/
*10:Wang Zichen “Commentary: The Baidu disconnect” http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2016-05/02/c_135328917.htm
*11:See eg. 章詒和http://www.weibo.com/1907616172/DtxDZzsCD
*12:See 中国衛生部「衛計委会同有関部門対武警北京第二医院進行調査」http://money.163.com/16/0503/15/BM5CVOA600252G50.html 「魏則西主治医刪近1000条微博改為卡通頭像」http://news.qq.com/a/20160503/058748.htm http://www.weibo.com/1670421223/DtGB2kCA3
