No Nexus for China: Google

Google says it has postponed the launch of two Android based mobile phones in China following a dispute with the government over censorship.

The formal launch was due to take place on Wednesday, a spokesperson said.

The announcement came as the Chinese government said Google and other foreign firms must obey the country's laws and traditions.

Google said last week that it had been targeted in a sophisticated cyber attack thought to originate in China.

The attacks were thought to target the e-mail accounts of human rights activists.

As a result, the company said that it would no longer censor search engine results in China even if it meant it had to shut down operations in the country.

Google had planned to launch two handsets running its Android operating system in cooperation Samsung and Motorola.

"The launch we have been working on with China Unicom has been postponed," said a Google spokesperson.

China Unicom is a network provider in the country.