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MS Gives Free Licenses To Oppressed Nonprofits
victorl19 writes "Microsoft is vastly expanding its efforts to prevent governments from using software piracy inquiries as a pretext to suppress dissent. It plans to provide free software licenses to more than 500,000 advocacy groups, independent media outlets and other nonprofit organizations in 12 countries with tightly controlled governments, including Russia and China."
So basically, they're taking a bunch of organizations in countries that probably have a 95% or higher piracy rate, and giving them free licenses.
So it's costing Microsoft essentially squat, but potentially improves human rights in said countries.
Commendable, but not exactly as philanthropic as MS probably wants to come across as....
"City hall" in German is "Rathaus" Kinda explains a few things......
Microsoft fundamentally believes there are some who will never pay for the software. Crackdown too hard on them or be too successful in preventing piracy, they might defect to Linux and open free software. So it did not try too hard to fight piracy. But the dissenters in oppressed countries might better served by specific hardened distros from Linux camp than by the free offerings from Microsoft. You never know if it has shown the source code to these governments or allowed them to install back doors.
sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
My god, how low will this company stoop for a dollar? Now they pretend they are displacing competitive software not because it will earn them more money, but because they are feeling charitable. Everyone knows it's a charade, except the dim bulbs who can't read past a headline. Go ahead Microsoft, take more money from the stupid people who support your shallow pretense. They're the only one who buy your crap anymore, you make the rest of us sick.
If anything we now know that Microsoft was a little deceptive when they previously said they were creating a blanket license, clearly it's based on territory and limited in scope. That's not to say its a bad thing, but certainly not what was originally sold.
That story was specifically in response to Russian attempts to use software piracy as a pretext to harass opposition NGOs, and Microsoft was focusing on Russia alone to counter that. This is a follow-up where the same program is pre-emptively expanded to other regions where same tactics may be employed by the governments.
Microsoft, in its recent press efforts, has shown it is very concerned about free and open software. So now Microsoft is trying to disguise itself as a free and open software vendor. A crack dealer will give away free samples to obtain and retain a customer......
Think again. Not doing it would a public relations disaster of epic proportions. As it stands it's an averted one. A narrowly averted public relations disaster.
The fact that they had to be told in the first place means they were well behind the curve -- as usual. I mean, seriously, they're the biggest software corp on earth, every resource you can think of. Think of what they didn't manage: A laid-back press conference saying they'd noticed years ago and quietly gave everyone they could think of a refund and free licenses. It's something you give your anti-piracy lawyers discretion to do, and hope to keep it quiet because of the abuse inherently possible with that, not something you want to have the nytimes splash all over the front page, forcing you to make an equally grand gesture to convince everyone you're not that evil.
FTFA: “We clearly have a very strong interest in ensuring that any antipiracy activities are being done for the purpose of reducing illegal piracy, and not for other purposes,” they say now, but that isn't what they always said: “Microsoft had long rejected requests from human-rights groups that it refrain from taking part in such cases, saying it was merely complying with Russian law.”
It's damage control, is what it is.
celebrate Microsoft's initiative and commitment to making this world a better place. I will write a personal letter to whoever made this decision if I can find out who saying the same.
If video games influenced behavior the Pac Man generation would be eating pills and running away from their problems.
Not a repost. They seem to want to escape PR of this http://tinyurl.com/2usjw6p [yhrm.org] has a link to a letter sent back ~April 15 2010.
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
America sucks. Where's my free copy of Office 2010?
Linux should really do this too. Oh, wait..
Not a repost. They seem to want to escape PR of this http://tinyurl.com/2usjw6p [yhrm.org] has a link to a letter sent back ~April 15 2010.
They could end up being accused of interfering in internal politics of another country by subsidising dissident groups.
No good way out of this really.
Previously the "blanket" license applied in Russia. They're adding it to more countries.
That's not deceptive. That's you calling it deceptive.
The Russian government treats copyright law as a criminal, as opposed to civil matter. The Russians would ask Microsoft if they were all licensed up, and Microsoft's people in the area were saying "no", probably because they didn't have enough pull to say "yes" within Microsoft.
It's typical bureaucracy. When the negative PR reached Redmond, they were like, "Whaaaaaa?" and responded by saying all NGOs in Russia are licensed, period.
Microsoft is now expanding the program in other countries where they suspect similar tactics may be used. How shameful.
Yes, because that's completely a reasonable comparison to make. Buying Microsoft is really just buying yourself into slavery.
What the Russian gov't is doing to the political opposition is criminal. Odds are that M$'s motives aren't pure as I'm sure someone, if not the originator of the idea, knew M$ would get good PR in the West for their actions. If one grants that their ulterior motives are impure it only underscores the beauty of what M$ is doing: Giving the Russian gov't a dose of their own medicine. What M$ is doing is along the same lines as Russia in that they are both doing something that they know will get good PR in the West but with 'hidden' self-serving ulterior motives. Russia deserves a dose of its own medicine. Kudos to M$ for poking the Russian gov't in the eye, even if M$ gets some benefit from it!
To those who point out the possibility/fact that Russia will just find some other pretext to appear to be legally cracking down on the Oligarchy's enemies, this doesn't mean that simply rolling over and giving up because that could/will happen is the correct course of action. If the opposition does that, then Russia will just continue to be the frakked up entity it has been since at least the time of Kievan Rus'.
But not Iran. Iranian groups don't get even a bed sheet let alone a blanket (license)!
First oppressed by the governments, and now oppressed by using Microsoft products. There is no mercy in this world.
wow, that's harsh.
it would be far less cruel to just leave them to the tender mercies of the secret police and torture squads.
Now maybe they meant only Russia but it doesn't take much to read that statement as applying globally. An ambiguity I'm sure they didn't mind.
Aleksandr Ponosov was charged with illegal use of unlicensed (pirate) copies of Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office on 12 computers being used in the school (article 146.3 of the Russian Criminal Code) and of damnification of 266,593.63 rubles (about 10,000 USD) to Microsoft Corporation. The charges could result in 5 years of imprisonment.
As a result of the pilot programs, in October 2008, Russian officials mandated that all schools use open source software.
Followup article
Help stamp out iliturcy.
Non-profit organizations tend to be of the community centered local skills development political lean.
If they are true to their ideology they should be using open source.
Using Microsoft software is not very community focused and even if they are not paying for it they are supporting the monopoly through futher extending the install base. And the talent level in local software is limited to install the software and if it fails, reinstall it.
This is ridiculous. I thought Slashdot was finally over this kind of thing?
I'm sorry man, I lost you after the third dollar sign. No one will take your arguments seriously like this, anymore than anyone would take someone obviously biased against FOSS repeatedly using terms like "linsux" or "open sores".
There's a huge difference between a statement that's easy to misinterpret, and deliberately misinterpreting a statement.
I hate to tell you this, but itworld.com is not an official Microsoft outlet. What Microsoft actually said was:
One challenge, however, is that some NGOs in a number of countries, including Russia, are unaware of our program or do not know how to navigate its logistical processes, which involves ordering the donated software through a Microsoft partner. We'll solve this problem by providing a unilateral NGO Software License that runs automatically from Microsoft to NGOs and covers the software already installed on their PCs. We'll make this new, non-transferable license applicable to NGOs in a number of countries, including in Russia.
So they started in a few (mostly unnamed) countries and now they have expanded it.
Those software cost money to produce, so giving them away for free to another country's customers is obviously dumping by any measure.
So those countries can complain to WTO that USA is dumping IP products to their country and apply import taxes on these licenses, then they can bust those organizations for "tax evasion" instead of piracy. What's more, since Microsoft gave them those licenses, they can "investigate" Microsoft for "assisting tax evasion" as a payback.
Brilliant.
Oliver.
from what I recall from this old story, there was lots of noise about using open source software instead of Microsoft's because of how the government was using the licensing issues to dig into the computers. The move was to push for completely replacing Windows and Microsoft software because at that point there is nothing but a public relations issue for the government if word started getting out there was nothing to warrant the searches.
This isn't unlike how Microsoft, via the BSA, was going after US School systems to get them to sign expensive licensing contracts.
The BSA would force an expensive audit and find some unlicensed software. There would be hugely expensive fines or Microsoft would agree to just an expensive multi-year license agreement and forgive all unlicensed software fines. The school systems were discussing this and some just jumped off of Windows and started to show how the others could too. Microsoft and the BSA pulled out and offered much cheaper licensing deals. The jumps to GNU/Linux and open source software dropped off.
LoB
"Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
It should hopefully prevent them from being arrested on trumped up charges of pirating $200 USD OSes, $400 USD Office Software.
For anyone who wants to see the link without being prompted to register to nytimes.com:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/17/world/17russia.html
Microsoft doesn't have any operations and/or sales in Iran. Almost all commercial software is pirated. Even if they did, in Iran government doesn't really need to offer an excuse to investigate anyone.
Who do you think lobbied for laws that let government meddle in software licensing?
Analogies don't equal equalities, they are merely somewhat analogous.
how is quoting an ITWorld news story that generalises what was actually said come down to proof of explicitly stating it? So are we now holding Microsoft to account for how journalists write their stories? If you actually go and have a look at the actual MS statement they are not explicitly stating what you say at all. They say Russia and some other unamed countries.
Please don't use URL shortners. Im not gonna click that link, and a good portion of other people are not going to click that link. The information you were trying to spread is not being spread.
You take what very well may be an informative post, and relegated it to possibly being a trollish goatse post. It would be like taking a samsung dvd player and rebranding it as a $generic_brand. No one is gonna buy it, we all think its no good. No one is gonna click your link because it looks like $generic_goatse
Movement to Overthrow MS Tyranny.
Can I have a free MSDN license?
I'm not a lawyer, but I play one on the Internet. Blog
I agree that the principle is bad. Apart from the lack of information in the link name, it doubles the number of servers involved and will break the way back machine. However, in the particular case of tinyurl it's worth knowing that if you go to their homepage you can set things so that you see the URL before visiting it.
=~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();
Mod parent up (funny).
It's great the way the Microsoft astro-turfers have clearly been preparing for this story so much that they even jump on each other's postings as being MS
Or put another way Whooooosh... the sound you hear is a MS attack squadron coming in to kill NCO baby Bambies. Or possibly a joke.
=~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();
Piracy is much better than the alternative, using the alternative happily. Making a feel-good story out of giving to people what they have already taken that they cannot pay for must be such a cool result for a middlemanaging doublespeak specialist!
s/being MS/being anti-MS/ ... sorry; clearly to funny for me :-}
=~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();
What should they do exactly?
Slashdot rejects some of the longer links with a "Filter error: That's an awful long string of letters there."
the link is
www . yhrm. org/ eng/news/network/ microsoft_avoids_taking_ responsibility_for_its_representatives_action_in_ anastasia_deni
ie remove spaces
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
I think Microsoft, because of its long tradition of foul play and , has reached a point of no return where anything good they might ever do will always be received with suspicion and distrust. They've got no one to thank but themselves.
Knowledge is power; knowledge shared is power lost.
You should be fine. LSD trips can last several hours, but they don't tend to have long-term effects. Stay calm, and good luck! :)
Le français vous intéresse?
That story was specifically in response to Russian attempts to use software piracy as a pretext to harass opposition NGOs, and Microsoft was focusing on Russia alone to counter that.
To be more precise, Microsoft's actions were a response to an article in the New York Times about Russian attempts to use software piracy as a pretext to harass opposition NGOs and the fact that Microsoft representatives were supporting them. This had been going on for well over a year, but until the story hit the NYT no-one could get Microsoft to do anything about it.
Now maybe they meant only Russia but it doesn't take much to read that statement as applying globally. An ambiguity I'm sure they didn't mind.
Maybe you would, but I'd consider that to mean "some countries, but the US isn't one of them so don't get your hopes up".
... Microsoft will be sponsoring Wikileaks, too?
It's a corporation that watches out for its bottom line and does what it can to eek out a profit. I am a big user of open source software, and I turn down jobs that are primarily Microsoft based, but its because I like OSS tools and am use to them.
There are many people who feel the opposite way. They love Microsoft development tools and feel quite comfortable in the Microsoft environment. They believe Microsoft has done a lot to get computers and technology into the hands of billions of people. They like to point out the fact that millions of people could legitimately use OSS tools like Linux and Open Office for free decide to pirate Windows and Microsoft Office instead.
There were many questionable Microsoft practices in the past and there are probably a few going on today. This was because Microsoft took the competition of OSS tools more seriously than most people did back in the 1990s and feared the openness of the World Wide Web and Internet back when most people didn't even know what it was.
What Microsoft is doing in this case is fantastic. They are trying to enforce the proper licensing of their software on a global basis. They are doing this with cheaper software versions in developing countries and working with governments to enforce licensing regulations. After all, that's how Microsoft makes money.
It's a strategy that has been working. In China, the rate of piracy has declined - much of it is in large enterprises. Microsoft probably now earns billions in China through there effort to get users to license their software. Microsoft knows that this is a long term battle -- getting users and governments use to the concept of paying for software they pirate, but their efforts have been working.
Now, Microsoft is reversing itself in places where governments are using pirated software as an excuse to shut dissent. Giving out free licenses isn't directly hurting its revenue. These dissident organizations are small and as you point out, it doesn't cost Microsoft a penny to give out licenses.
However, imagine how this hurts Microsoft's efforts to get governments to enforce licensing in their society as a whole. The Russian government and businesses are just starting to pay licensing fees for their software. With Microsoft's move, this effort to enforce licensing will now grind to a halt. This is a great potential revenue loss for Microsoft and probably sets back their goal to stamp out Microsoft software piracy in those countries by two decades.
It doesn't matter what you think of copyright, Microsoft, software licensing, or open source software. It basically comes down to Microsoft giving up revenue and turning over its long term fight to get licensing revenue outside of the developed world.
You can always put it in an anchor tag
Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
It doesn't if you make it a proper link.
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
And who says microsoft can't be good, and do good deeds? :)
Yet again MS is doing good deeds, helping those in need. Gates might not be in the helm anymore, but no one can argue that Gates wouldn't be a humanitarian.
I know, this is /. and MS bashing is forte, but yeah, i'm kinda MS fanboy when it comes to desktop, and work productivity :) Nevermind, they actually do make GOOD hardware too, keyboards are way better than Logitech's for example. 2 best keyboards i've ever used have been Microsoft products, and they are overwhelmingly in their own class. I just sold a highend logitech keyboard i had been using for couple weeks, because it sucked compared to low end microsoft keyboard. Some keys in odd positions was the main reasons.
I keep trying linux at desktop, but it fails there utterly time after time again. But i wouldn't put windows as a server, unless AD, Exchange, SharePoint are required. AD, Exchange and SharePoint are excellent pieces of software.
Long story short, i'm very glad MS is doing this, enabling nonprofits to legally enjoy the superior productivity offered for getting their work done, and thus getting protected from using piracy as an excuse to oppress.
Sure, one of the points on doing this probably was goodwill PR, but it doesn't negate the fact they are doing this.
Pulsed Media Seedboxes
Thanks :)
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
This move by Microsoft is going to reassure the countries in question that these NGOs are working to undermine the current governments. Getting 'philanthropic' protection from one of the greediest of corporations? You really believe they are going to believe it? This move will ensure even stricter raids & oppression of NGOs, for what it's worth...
These are "oppressive governments" we are talking about here, right? So now when they raid you looking for licenses, they burn any they find, and, then they shut you down for operating on unlicensed software. Heck, if you are using Linux they could still do it. You'd have to go to court to prove them wrong. Their court.
If they want you, they have you, laws be dammed.
Slashdot displayed the yhrm.org original address after the link too, so I could see it wasn't goatse.
To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
In other news, Microsoft was questioned by several media outlets on Monday morning about a recently discovered build of MS Office labeled 'MSOffice.trojanhorse' which was given for free to several so-called 'Oppressed Nonprofit' organizations. The software giant did not release a formal statement, but did advise one reporter that "all 'MSOffice.trojanhorse' users should keep their internet connection up while using their free copy of the office suite." ;)
using System.Awesome;
Yes, I realise that countering AC lies one by one is like trying to stop a hurricane by blowing in the opposite direction.
You know, there is a difference between trolling and pointing out the flaws in your reasoning. Just saying.
Hypocrite much?
You know, there is a difference between trolling and pointing out the flaws in your reasoning. Just saying.
Please don't use URL shortners.
For URLs in posts on Slashdot, I can agree. But for URLs in signatures, which are limited to 120 characters, what do you recommend?
You be trippin' homey :P
Requiem for the American Dream