Nasdaq-listed internet search engine Baidu has been forced to go into damage-control mode amid allegations it took money from unlicensed medical companies to artificially boost search results for them.
Amid what mainland media have described as Baidu's biggest public relations crisis, company chairman Robin Li said in an internal e-mail that he would shoulder full responsibility for 'hurting the feelings of users and clients', according to the Chongqing Economic Times.
Reports broadcast last weekend by China Central Television after investigations it had conducted said that a Baidu representative had offered to manipulate search results to give paying clients higher search rankings. The representative also explained how he could manipulate licensing documents on behalf of clients to make it appear that they were selling certified products.
Baidu did not state which companies paid for the more prominent listings, making it impossible for its users to judge the search results on their own merit.
But the CCTV reports said clients selling unlicensed products and services, or products backed by false claims, had been given prominence in Baidu searches.
In a statement, Baidu, believed to be the world's biggest Chinese-language search engine, said it had terminated contracts with two sales representatives because they failed to uphold the company code of ethics.
Baidu said it had begun a crackdown targeting unlicensed clients and ads making untruthful claims.