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China Shuts Down Marriott's Website and Mobile App Over Tibet Gaffe

Deanna Ting

Photo Credit: Marriott is being punished by Chinese authorities for identifying Taiwan, Tibet, and other Chinese-claimed regions as their own countries. Pictured is a suite at the Shanghai Marriott Pudong East as seen on May 13, 2016. Marriott

Skift Take

This incident is a tough reminder for Marriott and many other global companies that when it comes to China, especially, everything is politics.

Marriott's Chinese website and mobile app are being shut down temporarily at the request of Chinese government officials in Shanghai as punishment for the company listing Chinese-claimed regions Tibet, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan as countries in a recent Mandarin-language customer survey sent to Marriott loyalty members. In a statement issued on January 11, Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson said "In China, at the request of the Government, we have taken down our Chinese websites and apps to conduct a full review and audit." He later added, "Upon completion of a full investigation into how both incidents happened, we will be taking the necessary disciplinary action with respect to the individuals involved, which coul

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