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Can't find any better sources than "The People's Daily"? Please, I know you have better source links than that.

While I find this revolting, any honest assesment shows Microsoft is far behind other US corportations when it comes to selling out to China. Read Business Week's article outlining this deal:

"Microsoft botched efforts in China by failing to make friends with the Chinese government early on. The software company may be making up for lost time."

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/apr2006/tc20060426_405461.htm

What they're obviously referring to is companies like IBM, that have been building huge factories over in China since the 90's. So Microsoft is going to buy $700 million in Chinese hardware each year? Big deal, IBM sold the Chinese government their $10 Billion/year PC business last year, so this deal won't even be earning the Chinese 1/10th of that new business they just got from IBM. How much hardware do you think other companies like HP are buying from China each year? A lot more than $700 million I'm sure as well.

So while this new Microsoft deal stinks, and Gates is now sucking up to the Chinese like IBM and others taught him, try to keep some perspective. And posting links from The People's Daily isn't going to offer much.

At this point we're stuck hoping the "freetraitors" are right, because the sellouts of our technology to China have reached full throttle. And if the technology is going to be allowed to flow, we better at least get paid for it.

I'm at home in Shanghai, day off.

I can walk less than 100 yards from my house to a DVD store that sells software and buy Windows XP Pro and XP Office Suite for $1.50 each. If fact, I can buy *any* really expensive super popular CAD, Multimedia, PC Utility, Virus Protect, OS software on the market for $1.50. Cheaper if I buy more than one title at a time.

There have been *no* visible strides in IP Protection other than an occasional staged bulldozer rolling over movie DVDs on the news. On any Saturday, there are no less than 10 DVD salespeople on the steet outside with the backs of their three wheeled cart bikes filled to the top with all the latest titles. The only exception was when Harry Potter chose Shanghai to Open, the result was DVDs available in Chinese only for the first 6 weeks one week after screening, then... English. See how it works.

If Bill is offering to do this, it is because he wants the Chinese government to get the boot legs off the shelves starting with the coming release of "Vista". Instead of that money going to street vendors and small operations, it will now flow into the hands of high level officials through the joint venture. Clearing the shelves will happen with a very short phone call from Mr. Hu.

The money Bill is losing Vs. the money he can make by setting up this tech transfer makes it all worth while. The numbers must be good if he has committed to training 10,000 Chinese. I just feel bad for all the programmers and their families he just signed up for long term international service.

Thursday, April 27, 2006

IBM to launch cheaper mainframe in China

http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060427/BUSINESS01/60426008/1003/NEWS

Which one scares you more? The Chinese running Windows on their PC's, or getting mainframes from IBM?