How Microsoft trounced Linux in China and what it means for freedom, justice, and the price of s/w

[Deja Q]

http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/hiner/?p=525

Kirkpatrick wrote, “No other Fortune 500 CEO gets quite the same treatment in China. While most would count themselves lucky to talk with one of China’s top leaders, Gates will meet with four members of the Politburo … As one government leader put it while introducing Gates at a business conference, the Microsoft chairman is ‘bigger in China than any movie star.’ Last spring President Hu Jintao toured the Microsoft campus in Redmond, Wash., and was feted at a dinner at Gates’ home. ‘ You are a friend to the Chinese people, and I am a friend of Microsoft,’ Hu told his host. ‘Every morning I go to my office and use your software.’”


Article has more...

Mind you, it's been said (source Cnet Asia, 2005) that China's piracy rate is at 90%...

[meegbear]

1. GET A MAC!

Sorry, wrong topic.

[Deja Q]

3. Gates vs Jobs, I'd rather support Gates.

[meegbear]

5. I hear yah ...

:thumbsup:

[Gman]

2. Jintao may use MS software

but it's probably illegal software.

[iconoclastic cat]

4. What a perfect pair of totalitarians. nt

[Old and In the Way]

6. It's odd that Linux isn't more popular there.

Lots of bootleg MS Windows there...I've seen XP selling on disk for 16 RMB (about $2.00). I suspect it is brand name visibility. Wouldn't surprise me to see Linux get more popular over time. MS doesn't seem to have a real problem with Chinese rips...I think they'd prefer to capture marketshare any way they can.

[Deja Q]

7. If MS doesn't have a problem with Chinese rips, they may as well disband the BSA.

(Business Software Alliance)

[AdHocSolver]

9. It should be obvious why China's rulers would prefer Microsoft over Linux.

At one point IIRC, China was distributing its own version of Linux called Red Flag Linux. However, I can understand why a dictatorship would prefer Microsoft: Microsoft products are so insecure that privacy is easily breached. If you want to spy on someone, you would definitely encourage them to use Microsoft products.

Microsoft products are riddled with spyware to prevent users from "stealing" from the company. If China's leaders play nice with Bill, then maybe he will use that spyware to spy on critics of the government.

[Old and In the Way]

10. Good point...hadn't thought about that.

What I don't get is how they can manage to install XP without the key. I know I had to go through gyrations to get my legit copy reloaded. I suppose they can do a workaround, but probably don't get the updates for the software...making it even easier to exploit.

[Canuckistanian]

11. I wonder if Gates built a special 'open backdoor' version for China?

That might be the reason for the chumminess with government leaders, the "pirated" discs and the lack of copyright violation enforcement.

[eppur_se_muova]

8. Sometimes you use a carrot, sometimes you use a stick ...

Huge Chinese piracy ring tackled

Pirated software worth $500m (£250m) has been seized as the FBI shuts down a world-spanning piracy outfit.

Before the raids the Chinese counterfeiting syndicate was thought to have sold and distributed software worth more than $2bn.

The FBI and China's Public Security Bureau arrested 25 people during the two-week operation against the pirates.

Despite recent crackdowns, industry figures suggest that 82% of the software used in China is counterfeit.

Piracy probe

The FBI said it had been building up a case against the piracy syndicate for years before staging the raids on the software production plants in China's Guangdong province.
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more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6917127.stm