Baidu's (Nasdaq:BIDU) interactive Q&A channel "Baidu Knows" launched a file sharing platform, "Baidu Wendang," on November 12 at wendang.baidu.com. The platform allows registered users to upload, manage and share documents, for which they earn "Baidu Knows" points, and download documents using the points earned. Non-registered users can search and view file content.

Some of our editors and analysts wondered: the service was named "Baidu Docs," it sounded like "Google Docs" -- could it replace Google (Nasdaq:GOOG) Documents in the mainland? For the past few months, Google's document-sharing service has become nearly unusable in Shanghai, opening every other day at best, crashing multiple times a day, and in general causing frustration and teeth gnashing. (For unknown reasons, Google searches and Google News also tend to be spotty, while Google Calendar is fairly reliable.) China residents have grown used to Internet disappointment -- Facebook, Twitter and many foreign blogs been inaccessible in China since the fall -- but we could definitely use a Google Docs look-alike.

Despite our hopes that Baidu might spare our patience and teeth, however, its service is not a localized duplicate of Google Documents. Uploaded content is accessible to all Internet users, not just personal contacts, and the service lacks a function to edit shared documents, a major draw to Google.

The new service is actually more similar to a user-generated version of the Google digital library project, with more scattered content: how-to books for Linux learners, pirated PDFs of the "Twilight" series (not that I was looking) and cheat sheets for college exams.

With the domestic outcry over Google's digital library, it seems like an odd time for Baidu to launch an overlapping service. Google is now locked in a court battle with authors and publishers over a settlement for works reproduced in its digital library project, and the controversy has also turned up the heat on Google within China. State broadcaster CCTV aired multiple reports last month that the Google library is suspected of large-scale copyright infringement of Chinese-language books, and the China Written Works Copyright Society, which is heading up the domestic complaint against the Google service, recently called on the Chinese government to lend a hand in swaying U.S. authorities.

Will Baidu also face copyright trouble over its service? While Baidu has not always been the darling of CCTV and other media outlets, it may escape the intense criticism that recently plagued Google China; however, it's doubtful that it can ward off all trouble. Baidu Docs carries a notice that it deletes all disputed content and holds registered users responsible for copyright violations, but China's online video sites carry similar warnings and have still been subject to a flurry of lawsuits. And unlike Baidu's mp3 service, Baidu Docs stores pirated material on Baidu's own server.

Despite the legal risks, Baidu's service is growing quickly. We think it could be a hit, registering more Chinese users, who tend to like online reading more than their Western counterparts, and improving stickiness for existing Baidu users. The service had amassed 7,400 documents within 48 hours of its November 12 release, and the number had doubled to 15,242 by Monday morning. As of Monday, professional reference made up the greatest proportion at 5,578 files, while tests, essays and other student educational materials represented 4,603 files, and literary works accounted for 2,516 documents.

Baidu Docs could see even sharper growth if the company begins promoting it through its search results, as Baidu has done for products like Q&A service Baidu Knows, wiki site Baidu Encyclopedia and C2C e-commerce platform Youa.com. We'll keep an eye out for further growth and legal complications for Baidu Docs and keep clicking hopefully on Google Documents in the meantime.