Microsoft Denies Sabotaging Mandriva Linux PC Deal

An anonymous reader writes "Microsoft has denied sabotaging Mandriva's deal with the Nigerian government to supply Classmate PCs from Intel along with a customized Mandriva Linux operating system. 'From Microsoft's perspective it's a matter of choice. In the statement sent to InternetNews.com, Microsoft said it believes individuals, governments and other organizations should be free to choose the software and other technologies that best meet their needs. "We are seeing strong market demand for Windows on low-cost devices to help governments in the areas of education, local innovation, and jobs and opportunity," the Microsoft spokesperson said in the statement.' The company's denial is in response to Mandriva's CEO Francois Bancilhon expression of disappointment with Microsoft."

Comments

Re:A fine bit of Clintonesque "what 'is' is" spin

[Anonymous Coward]

Dude, in case you haven't noticed, Linux-based companies don't make their revenue from selling the OS. If Nigeria wanted Mandriva on their pc's, they could simply downloaded an ISO and loaded it on their machines without paying Mandriva a cent. The revenue that Mandriva was counting on was from support contracts. You know, the same kind of business model that Red Hat uses.