Google has postponed the launch of two mobile phones in China, adding to the potential commercial fallout of its dispute with Beijing over internet censorship and email hacking.
The delay affects separate phones made by Motorola and Samsung, both of which are powered by the Android mobile operating software system developed by Google.
Both phones were scheduled to debut this week, with China Unicom Ltd serving as the carrier.
The change in plans is the latest aftershock from Google's threat to close its internet search engine and pull out of China unless the government relents on its rules requiring the censorship of content that the ruling party considers to be subversive.
Google decided to challenge the restrictions on free expression after uncovering a computer attack that targeted its software coding and the email accounts of human rights activists protesting the Chinese government's policies.
The postponement of the new mobile phones in China show the country stands to lose more than just the world's best-known search engine if Google leaves.
Both the Samsung and Motorola phones are geared to run Google's search engine and other internet services, and with the availability of those services remaining accessible in China now in doubt it made sense to put the sale of the phones on hold for now.
Google still wants to remain in China if a compromise can be reached with the government in the next few weeks.
The outcome of those discussions appear likely to determine whether the Samsung and Motorola phones will be sold in China.
The nation is world's most-populous mobile phone market, with more than 700 million accounts, and has an increasingly prosperous populace eager for the latest technology.
