China and ‘naked PCs’
p2p news / p2pnet: Way back in 1998, Bill Gates told students at the University of Washington’s business school, “Although about three million computers get sold every year in China, people don’t pay for the software. Someday they will, though. And as long as they’re going to steal it, we want them to steal ours.
“They’ll get sort of addicted, and then we’ll somehow figure out how to collect sometime in the next decade.”
Now, “The Chinese government is calling on computer manufacturers to make sure their machines include a legal operating system before they leave the factory,” says The Register.
A notice issued by the Ministry of Information Industry, the State Copyright Bureau, and the Ministry of Commerce says all computers made within China’s borders, “should include a pre-installed operating system,” says the story.
“This mirrors comments from Microsoft, which has long criticised sales of ‘naked PCs’ as helping pirates.”
Also See:
how to collect – Bill Gates’ China sales trip, July 2, 2004
The Register – Chinese PC makers told to install legal OS, April 12, 2006
April 12th, 2006 at 4:01 pm
Will that obligatory OS be Linux? Hopefully it will be, I just want device drivers realeased by hardware manufactures, instead of hacked drivers by means of trial and error.
April 12th, 2006 at 4:07 pm
I would go a step further, we’re talking about China here, I would force an specific OS upon people.
I, the supreme ruler of China, dictate that all ‘puters now come with Kubuntu, preinstalled.
April 12th, 2006 at 7:03 pm
Hey how about selling a pc in a welded cast iron case they no one can access without a welding torch, that will stop unauthorised tampering!!
April 13th, 2006 at 2:19 am
This is such BS. If you use a Linux Live CD you don’t even need a hard drive in the computer. And Linux Live is FREE.
April 13th, 2006 at 12:40 pm
Isn’t that the way drug dealers work too? “Come on, kid, try it, the first one’s free…”
It makes one look at these “donations” of software from Microsoft in a somewhat different light.