AfterDawn: Tech news

Microsoft asks China to stop piracy in state-run companies

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 22 Sep 2012 12:30 User comments (6)

Microsoft asks China to stop piracy in state-run companies According to Bloomberg, Microsoft has asked China to stop piracy in at least four of the country's state-run companies.
The software giant has filed complaints against China National Petroleum (CNPC), China Post Group, China Railway Construction, and TravelSky Technology, each of which are run by the government.

Supposedly, Microsoft believes that over 40 percent of Microsoft Office and Server software used by the companies are pirated. Reps for the offices each called the estimates "greatly exaggerated" or "inaccurate."

China has long been a haven of pirated software, with most estimated putting legitimate Windows operating system ownership at under 25 percent.

Earlier this year, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer met with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan with Wang later promising to help crack down on piracy.

The BSA (whose stats are normally laughable but always interesting) says (via Cnet) Chinese buyers spend just $8.89 per PC on legal software, less than a quarter of the amount spent in other BRIC nations including Russia and far, far below the U.S.

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6 user comments

123.9.2012 08:17

This is a country that pirated an entire automobile line and threatened to kick the company that created it out of the country if they did not drop their case against the "private" auto maker who copied every single detail with the exception of the name plate...do you really think they care about some pirated software when they are the pirates? The reps that claimed the numbers were "inaccurate" were probably telling the truth; the numbers are almost certainly much higher.

223.9.2012 13:50

I have to agree. If 95+% of Chinese PCs aren't running a pirated version of Windows, for example, I'd be shocked.

...Of course, so am I ^^' .

323.9.2012 14:54

Copyright Infringement on a national scale, and yet the software industry thrives.

hmm...

423.9.2012 23:50

Buy.microsoft.com in China probably redirects to Buy.microsoft.ch...

524.9.2012 05:15

china might try and play nice for a while but they have the highest population a very powerful military and provide a huge number of everyday things people around the world buy and use.microsoft dont have the power and resources to stop china pirating there software.

625.9.2012 19:31

China stop piracy................LMAO
All I have to say...............

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