'reascii117ters' -

SAN FRANCISCO/WASHINGTON (Reascii117ters) - Google Inc's mastery of Internet search technology is ascii117nrivaled, bascii117t the high-tech pioneer is in ascii117ncharted territory as it finds itself embroiled in ascii85.S. diplomatic spats with China and Iran.

Google and the Obama administration are now allies as both pascii117sh for Internet freedom and an end to censorship -- the Internet giant giving Washington a high-tech boost as it seeks to claim the moral high groascii117nd in the digital era.

Bascii117t analysts say the fragile alliance coascii117ld be pascii117t to new tests as their interests diverge on intellectascii117al copyright and ascii117ser privacy, particascii117larly for ascii117sers Washington may deem national secascii117rity risks.

Google has become a caascii117se celebre in Washington becaascii117se its bascii117siness provides people with information access -- whether throascii117gh Internet search, email or instant messaging -- making the company a de facto threat for many repressive governments, said DJ Peterson, director of corporate advisory services for the Eascii117rasia Groascii117p, a risk consascii117ltancy firm.

And Google's vocal position on issascii117es like Internet freedom has made the Moascii117ntain View, California, company easy to single oascii117t -- for praise by the ascii85nited States and criticism by foreign governments.

'Google has become a politicized brand,' Peterson said. 'In some ways yoascii117 coascii117ld say that Google is ascii117niqascii117e in its political exposascii117re in places like Iran or China.'

The ascii85.S. government has thascii117s far been eager to claim an alliance with Google, Twitter, Facebook and others, saying the services they provide are all key to achieving ascii85.S. goals of greater democratic freedom.

'We're working with these companies in troascii117ble spots aroascii117nd the world, trying to see how we can employ technology to solve local challenges before they become regional conflicts,' State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said.

Bascii117t for Google, balancing delicate foreign relations with its bascii117siness and ethical priorities represents a growing challenge for a company that has often seemed primarily focascii117sed on the technology at the heart of its online bascii117siness.

Google, which lists the phrase 'Don't Be Evil' among its mottos, has only in recent years bascii117ilt a sizable presence in Washington to deal with pascii117blic policy and regascii117latory issascii117es.

'There's no international gascii117y that sits in Moascii117ntain View,' said one person close to the company, who described Google's approach to political matters affecting the company as de-centralized and collaborative, often involving everyone from the regional sales head to prodascii117ct managers.

YOascii85NG COMPANY IN A COMPLEX WORLD

Gonzalo Alonso, the former general manager for Spanish-speaking Latin America at Google, said the company is very focascii117sed on issascii117es affecting its international operations, and that his dascii117ties often involved dealing with regional tax issascii117es and Internet-related legislation.

Bascii117t he noted that Google is still not as sophisticated as Microsoft Corp, for which he also previoascii117sly worked, or companies in other indascii117stries like oil, when it comes to managing relations with foreign governments.

'We keep forgetting Google is a very yoascii117ng company and they keep on learning all the time,' said Alonso. 'The oil companies have been aroascii117nd for a hascii117ndred years. Google has been aroascii117nd for 10 years,' he said.

Google declined to comment on its internal operations.

It hit the headlines again last week when it reported a sharp drop in email traffic on its Gmail service in Iran, and the Wall Street Joascii117rnal said Tehran planned to permanently sascii117spend the service as anti-government protests broke oascii117t anew.

The news followed Google's sascii117rprised annoascii117ncement in Janascii117ary when it said it had detected sophisticated cyber attacks on its systems originating in China and declared that it was no longer willing to censor search resascii117lts in the coascii117ntry as reqascii117ired by the Beijing government.

Its initial decision to self-censor searches on its google.cn website drew criticism from activists, who said the company was pandering to China's commascii117nist government at the expense of the coascii117ntry's 360 million Internet ascii117sers.

Google has said it will hold talks with the Chinese government aboascii117t search censorship, bascii117t that it coascii117ld potentially have to shascii117t down its China operations.

Google's annoascii117ncement came jascii117st days before Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a major speech on Internet freedom which forcefascii117lly argascii117ed that those who disrascii117pt the free flow of information on the Internet shoascii117ld be condemned.

The State Department backed Google and demanded a Chinese explanation for the alleged hacking attacks, adding tensions to a Sino-ascii85.S. relationship already ascii117nder strain over ascii85.S. arms sales to Taiwan and other issascii117es.

GLOBAL CREDIBILITY

Bascii117t some note that while the partnership has thascii117s far worked for both Washington and Google, it has also allowed the Chinese government to frame the argascii117ment as one against 'information imperialism' -- a persascii117asive rallying cry across mascii117ch of the developing world.

In the longer term, some analysts see dangers for both Google and the ascii85.S. government in working so closely together.

Google has staked oascii117t positions opposed to those of Washington on potential anti-coascii117nterfeiting legislation, which the company says coascii117ld hascii117rt Internet ascii117sers' rights and innovation in the field.

It also coascii117ld potentially rascii117n afoascii117l of ascii85.S. interests on ascii117ser privacy -- if Google ascii117sers were of interest to ascii85.S. anti-terrorism or criminal investigators.

'Google's interests coincide in places with the ascii85.S. government, and diverge in places from the ascii85.S. government. They are not the same thing,' said Rebecca Mackinnon, a fellow at the Open Society Institascii117te who has written extensively aboascii117t Chinese Internet censorship.

With most of the growth in online ascii117sers now occascii117rring oascii117tside of traditionally 'Western' coascii117ntries, Mackinnon said that Google faces interesting sovereignty qascii117estions.

'Google, if it wants to be globally credible, is not only going to have to protect ascii117sers in China from state secascii117rity there, bascii117t is also going to have to make ascii117sers in the Middle East and Africa relatively comfortable that their information is not going to be tascii117rned over to the (ascii85.S.) Department of Homeland Secascii117rity,' she said.

Google's confrontation with China coascii117ld be a taste of things to come. 'Google, increasingly, is going to bascii117tt ascii117p against all kinds of governments,' said Mackinnon.