Microsoft has confirmed that access to the Bing search engine in China has been restored, having previously been shut down in the country.
ΌAccording to the BBC, the company did not explain why the search engine was not accessible, which had "sparked" concerns that the service may have been blocked by the Chinese authorities.
"We can confirm that Bing was not accessible in China, but the service has now been restored," Microsoft said in a statement.
The Chinese censorship watchdog GreatFire said the incident did not appear to be due to government action.
Microsoft continues to operate in China, even if other US tech companies have left or their services are being blocked. In general, relations with the Chinese authorities complicate matters, as the so-called "Chinese Firewall" - one of the most sophisticated Internet censorship and control systems in the world - uses a number of technical measures to block foreign platforms and controversial content. The Chinese authorities are also "hunting" for Virtual Private Networks, which allow the firewall to be bypassed, while Chinese social networking and messaging services have restrictions, with keywords and expressions being blocked if they disapprove of the country's political leadership.
Facebook, Twitter and Google are blocked in China, but Bing is working as it is subject to Chinese government censorship rules.
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