A laptop screen shows the homepage of Google.cn in Beijing June 8, 2006. Google Inc, which is seeking to broaden its presence in China, on Monday apologized to Internet users and Sohu.com Inc. [Reuters]

Google Inc., which is seeking to broaden its presence in China, on Monday apologized to Internet users and Sohu.com Inc., one of the country's major Web portals for using third-party technology in its latest product rollout.

Sohu.com said an investigation by its technicians found a method of typing in Chinese characters released by Google in China last week had copied a product by Sohu.

In response, Google said the product had in its initial R&D stage been built "leveraging some non-Google database resources," but it had since upgraded the system.

"We are willing to face this issue of ours. While we apologize for the inconvenience this may have incurred to users and Sohu, we have also adopted immediate actions," Google said in a statement emailed to Reuters.

China is the world's second-largest Internet users after the United States, with around 137 million Web users.