Microsoft has signed two agreements intended to deepen the
company's ties with the Chinese government, even as the country's officials
embark on programs meant to entrench rival open-source systems within the
state infrastructure.
Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's CEO, was in Bejing on Thursday to sign a deal
that will partner the software giant with the state-owned China National
Computer Software & Technology Service (CS&S), the country's largest
domestic software development and systems integration firm.
The two companies are set to co-develop products based on Microsoft's .Net
and Office System platforms. Another focus of the agreement is IT training,
with plans for the companies to jointly train 200 CS&S developers and 120
IT architects within one year, according to a press statement from Microsoft.
. . .
Microsoft's moves come after rival Sun Microsystems and China Standard
Software established Sun's Java Desktop System as the foundation for
desktop development and deployment in the country.
China Standard, a consortium of Chinese technology companies supported by
the Chinese government, aims to produce a nationwide standard desktop
software system to help bridge the nation's digital divide, according to a
statement from Sun.
The Sun agreement, signed earlier this week, will pave the way for China
Standard to deliver its own branded desktop products using the Java Desktop
System, subject to export approval from the U.S. government.
China plans to ultimately install at least 200 million copies of
non-Windows, pen-standards- based desktop software throughout the
country.
