Google returns to China with its Translate app

Google is rolling out its Translate app in China in a first-wave effort to reestablish a foothold in the world's most populous country.

The internet titan has been largely absent from China for the past seven years, after disputes over censorship caused Google to pull many of its services from use. It even moved its operations in the region to Hong Kong.

There has been a web-based version of Translate available to Chinese users for the past eight years -- but with a growing base of around 695 million mobile users (roughly half the country's population of 1.4 billion people), an app would be much more accessible.

The move was announced in a Google blog post, which was written in both Chinese and standard English "in the spirit of breaking down language barriers."

The Translate app is now available on the Chinese App Store for iOS or via direct download for Android, since Google Play hasn't been introduced to the Chinese market.

Reports indicated earlier this year that Google's app market might be closer to entering the country via a joint-venture agreement, and Google Scholar was rumored to be the first web service to make it past China's Great Firewall. Instead, Translate is leading the charge.

We reached out to Google for further comment on the release, but no response yet.

The world's biggest tech companies have learned to tread lightly in China, as Apple can attest. But if there's a way to tap into the massive potential of its rapidly modernizing society, they'll find ways to get in.