[Marxism] Bill Gates's "gift" to India

[Horacio Oliveira]

And Microsoft shows it's true face...

from: http://yahoo.reuters.com/financeQuoteCompanyNewsArticle.jhtml? 
duid=mtfh57891_2005-10-28_08-44-54_seo367555_newsml

Microsoft threatens to withdraw Windows in S.Korea
Fri Oct 28, 2005 04:44 AM ET SEOUL, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Microsoft  
Corp. (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research) has threatened to withdraw  
its Windows software from South Korea if the country's antitrust  
agency orders it to unbundle its Instant Messenger and Media Player  
from the operating system.

South Korea's Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) has been investigating  
allegations that the world's top software maker breached antitrust  
laws by incorporating the services into Windows.
"If the KFTC enters an order requiring Microsoft to remove code or  
redesign Windows uniquely for the Korean market, it might be  
necessary to withdraw Windows from the Korean market or delay  
offering new versions in Korea," Microsoft said in a U.S. regulatory  
filing on Thursday.

The KFTC began its probe in 2001 when South Korean Internet portal  
Daum Communications Corp. (035720.KQ: Quote, Profile, Research)  
alleged Microsoft's bundling of the operating system with other  
services broke antitrust rules. It widened the probe following a  
similar complaint from RealNetworks (RNWK.O: Quote, Profile,  
Research) in 2004.

A ruling could come as soon as Wednesday, a KFTC spokesman said.

"No matter what Microsoft does, we will proceed with our deliberation  
and discuss it again at a plenary session on Wednesday," Lee Tae-hwi  
said by telephone. "There is no change in our stance to fight unfair  
business practices."

Microsoft has previously said the complaint was without merit and  
that it would cooperate fully with the probe.

In the United States, Microsoft agreed to pay RealNetworks $761  
million early this month to settle an antitrust suit accusing it of  
using its dominance to promote its own Media Player.

After the agreement, RealNetworks said it was dropping similar suits  
in South Korea and Europe.

But the Korean commission has said its investigation would not be  
affected by the settlement.

Microsoft on Thursday posted a 24 percent rise in quarterly profit on  
robust sales of Windows, but tempered expectations of a sales spike.




On Oct 28, 2005, at 7:52 PM, Horacio Oliveira wrote:

> Hmmm let's see: The thief steals the intellectual property of many,  
> repackages it in a sweet-heart deal with an icon of North American  
> business and lands a monopoly. They (Microsoft) continue to thieve  
> ideas, buy out any smell of competition, or through intimidation  
> and other unlawful acts to destroy the innovative potential of  
> others. Microsoft is the antithesis of innovation.
>
> He "gives away" nothing. He is merely securing the domination of  
> Microsoft products. Note the words "support an Indian Government  
> effort" does not mean he is giving away anything, India is paying  
> for all this! It would be better to call this a "discount" and not  
> a donations. Gate's is still asking for India's soul--he is just  
> giving India a volume discount.
>
> And the why does one give a discount? In the Faustian world of  
> capitalism he is merely baiting the hook.
>
>
>
> On Oct 27, 2005, at 9:27 AM, Louis Proyect wrote:
>
>
>> Counterpunch, October 27, 2005
>> In India, Bill Gates Does Well By Doing "Good"
>> License to Bill
>>
>> By LILA RAJIVA
>>
>> To his fans, a Randian free-market hero, an Atlas barely quivering  
>> under the Himalayan chain of operating systems, software packages  
>> and security patches with which he feeds the hungering cyber- 
>> masses. Or as one Indian model squealed orgasmically, "Mr. Gates,  
>> you are my idea of the ideal man. You are rich, and you are  
>> powerful."
>>
>> And a philanthropist to...er.. boot.... The Gates foundation,  
>> which is worth $30 billion, (£17 billion), is now the largest  
>> charity run by a single philanthropist or private company And  
>> Gates says he intends to give away 90 per cent of his $50 billion  
>> fortune.
>>
>> On September 22 this year, Microsoft made its latest corporate  
>> raid on humanitarianism, pledging to partner with the Indian  
>> Ministry of Communication and Information Technology in seven  
>> crucial areas. The deal, largely unnoticed by the media, was  
>> struck at Microsoft's Redmond, Washington headquarters with  
>> Minister Dayanidhi Maran.
>>
>> Microsoft offered a new Windows XP Starter Edition licensed and  
>> built just for India in nine Indian languages as well as English;  
>> it "adopted" 100 schools in 6 states to provide an interactive  
>> learning environment and pledged to support an Indian government  
>> program to establish 100,000 rural kiosks with a range of  
>> affordable products and services; it also pledged to deliver a  
>> broadband and PC package targeted to first time users at an  
>> affordable monthly installment, to set up and fund with 2 million  
>> dollars an E-governance Center of Excellence for pilot programs,  
>> and to collaborate with Indian agencies and scientists to research  
>> Indic language computing technologies and increase security. (1)
>>
>> Shades of Rockefeller, who spent the latter part of his life  
>> guiltily giving away the fortune he'd amassed. Maybe His Billness  
>> has taken to reading the geek blogs with their unkindest cuts. Or  
>> Greg Palast and that crack of his about Blackbeard the Pirate has  
>> gotten to him. (2)
>>
>> Who steals my purse steals trash ...etc. etc.
>>
>> full: http://www.counterpunch.com/rajiva10272005.html
>>
>>
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