Regulator provides directions for Google and Microsoft

BEIJING - China's industry regulator will not shut down online mapping services provided by Google Inc and Microsoft Corp, the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping said on Friday.

The remarks - the first time the regulator has firmly denied that it intended to close the companies' online mapping services - has banished concerns that Google may have to cancel its service in China, which has been losing market share.

"We will not investigate or shut down the websites that have submitted their applications and are under examination," the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping said in an e-mailed reply to queries from China Daily. It added that it has received applications to provide services from the Chinese divisions of Google and Microsoft.