Google is returning to China? It never really left

Google Analytics has continued to transmit data across the Great Firewall despite other services being blocked

With Google reportedly in talks with Chinese authorities about opening a new Android app store, speculation is rife that an agreement could see government-approved apps would come automatically installed on Google's Android smartphones designed for the Chinese market.

Many interpret this step as Google planting a seed for its eventual return to China after exiting the Chinese market five years ago - yet our research at the University of Pennsylvania shows that Google has never completely left.