If these are the conditions, it is better to leave. This is the choice of LinkedIn, which has decided to leave China and close its offices in the country. The social media for professional contacts par excellence, will no longer be operational in China within a month. And there is news in the news: LinkedIn will also be the only major American social network to operate openly in the Land of the Dragon.
Hostile environment
In a note, the top management of LinkedIn motivated the decision by talking about an environment that has become increasingly difficult from an operational point of view, also due to the increasingly stringent requirements requested by Beijing. In fact, in recent months, Chinese regulators have approved new and increasingly stringent measures against technology companies that manage data, creating an exasperating climate even for Chinese big techs.
A few months ago, according to what the Wall Street Journal had written, the Chinese authority that watches over the internet had forced the top management of LinkedIn to better regulate their contents, giving them 30 days of time. A decision that had exacerbated relations between the American company and China. So much so as to arrive at today’s decision.
Nadella’s choice
LinkedIn was bought by Microsoft in June 2016 for a record $ 26.2 billion. A move by Nadella that had surprised everyone a bit, and that the CEO himself had presented with great enthusiasm: «The LinkedIn team – said Nadella – has created a fantastic business centered on connecting professionals from all over the world. Together we want to accelerate the growth of LinkedIn, but also that of Microsoft Office 365 and Dynamics ».
The LinkedIn operation also meant for Microsoft to further mark its future, which is very focused on the professional world. A world made up of services and technologies. Microsoft has the right tools (starting with Office 365 – the cloud version of its famous suite – up to Windows 11 and platforms like Dynamics). Also Microsoft, is among the leading companies in the field of cloud computing, together with Amazon. The intent, then, was to intersect these services with LinkedIn, so as to create an incredible concentration for the working world.