Google to set up in Zurich

The world's number one search engine is to open a research centre in Zurich swissinfo.ch

The world’s leading internet search engine, Google, has chosen Zurich as the base for its new European research and development centre.

Google says it chose Switzerland’s largest city because it offers access to information technology experts as well as a multilingual environment and favourable tax conditions.

“Zurich should be thought of as our European headquarters. We will bring the best of Europe’s computer scientists to Zurich,” Urs Hölzle, a vice-president at Google, told the “Neue Zürcher Zeitung” newspaper.

He added that Zurich was at the heart of Europe and offered high living standards and salaries and simple procedures for visa applications.

The California-based company says it intends to set up shop in Switzerland sometime in the spring, but gave no further details.

Officials in Zurich have reacted positively to the decision by Google – which was established in 1998 by two American students and has gone on to become the Web’s most popular search engine.

“We are happy that such a well-known international company is coming to Zurich,” said Beat Zimmermann, of the Zurich Chamber of Commerce.

“It is proof of the excellent quality of this location, including good economic conditions, highly qualified staff and favourable tax conditions.”

European workers

Hölzle says Google plans to develop software at the new centre and hopes to gain access to Europe-based computer scientists who are unable to work in the United States.

He added that the new office would allow a number of Google’s European employees working in the US an opportunity to move back to the continent.

“We have European employees in the US who really want to come back to Europe,” Hölzle said.

Although the company has 21 sales offices around the world, its software has so far only been developed at US locations.

However, that is set to change in the coming weeks when the company’s first research and development centre outside the US opens in India.

Last December, the company announced it was opening an office in the southern Indian city of Bangalore, which is considered a global technology hub offering access to well-educated computer scientists.

Tax benefits

Google – which processes more than 200 million requests per day – is one of many international firms that have recently chosen Switzerland as a base for their European operations.

A study by the consulting firm Arthur D. Little found that between 1999 and 2001, 59 per cent of global firms looking to locate in Europe chose Switzerland.

A set of favourable tax reforms initiated by the Swiss in 1997 is considered one of the most important reasons why international firms have chosen to come here.

Most recently, the US consumer giant Colgate Palmolive decided to relocate from Paris to Switzerland.

According to the French daily “Le Monde”, Colgate Palmolive will see its tax on profits decline from 30 per cent to six per cent.

Other companies that have set up shop in Switzerland since the tax reforms include Procter & Gamble, John Deere, Starbucks and the internet auction house eBay.

swissinfo, Karin Kamp

In brief

Google was set up in 1998 by two Stanford University students.

Since then, the US-based company has become the fastest and most popular search engine.

The company processes two million requests per day.

Google’s sales are about SFr900 million annually.