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Chinese IT Ministry Looks Askance At Google's Control of Android
itwbennett writes "In what one expert is calling a clear message to China's tech industry that the authorities want to support a homegrown mobile operating system, China's tech regulator warns in a white paper that the country is becoming too dependent on Google's Android OS. 'Our country's mobile operating system research and development is heavily reliant on Android,' reads the white paper from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. 'Although the Android system currently remains open source, the core technologies and technology roadmap is strictly controlled by Google.'"
Pot, kettle, black.
And create your own cheap knockoff?
Can't impose proper surveillance on their people :
Don't like it? Fork it. It's like the typical copycat bullshit China usually does, only better. Others have already taken the initiative:
http://news.yahoo.com/three-android-forks-exist-today-135000744.html
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Fork it and do not depend on google.
All your spies are belong to us !!
Huawet and ZTE can suck my hairy vagina !!
Who in their right mind would install a chinese OS on their device, unless it was Open Source. And i'd still be nervous even then.
Of course the Chinese might be able to fork some of it, and the Apache licensee lets them do this without giving back. But then, given that 50% Android phones pay a tribute to MS, the Chinese government might get into trouble for being a pirate nation, unless of course they pay tribute to MS>
"She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
Isn't it time for another poll about how much we want to pretend we hate daylight savings time?
And create your own cheap knockoff?
Yep!
What the Chinese will do is get the source code to Android, use a substandard Chinese version of Java and give theirs away for much less than what Google is giving their version of Android away for!
Just wait! We'll see a Chinese version of GNU soon using a sub standard environmentally unfriendly version of 'C' to code their versions!
There are already a number of Android forks in China, including one by the Chinese search giant Baidu, who has also replaced Google as the default search engine in most of the Android phones there.
cf. "Android is failing by succeeding in China"
The Google "control" of Android doesn't seem to be doing much to deter Chinese companies.
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Not entirely true. Google initially created Android and released it as open source. But Android today is governed by the Open Handset Alliance. Several companies (including hardware ones) have a say in Android development, not just Google.
http://www.openhandsetalliance.com/android_overview.html
http://blindscribblings.com - Tasty pop-culture in conceptual fashion.
Just curious...
If you want to look smart and use a rarely encountered word such as "askance", you should at least remember not to capitalize a preposition.
I like fine vocabulary just like any other intellectual, but pretense bothers me - a lot.
"The agriculture ministry is not in charge of Gundam" - Japanese ministry official.
A bullet to the base of the skull won't do it.
Most likely, China just wants control of the OS used on phones within its Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.
How come China is now complaining about Android dominance and they are using window$ without any complaints even if it's dominating on another platform?
This doesn't make any sens. Looks like somebody is trying to get attention at themselves here and it's probably heavily influence by a Google competitor that is irrelevant in mobile OS today. Yeah you know who you are M$.
While slightly trollish he does make a good point(posting ac due to mod points on other parts of the article.
Definition of ASKANCE
1: with a side-glance : obliquely
2: with disapproval or distrust : scornfully
Guess that's the word of the day...
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It is in China's best interest to be developing and running their own operating systems. It's not just a matter of national security, though that does play a role. It also means they have intelligent and experienced people of their own to contribute to the global market as true peers.
Piracy works, but it always leaves you a step behind. It does nothing to earn respect, either.
How come China is now complaining about Android dominance and they are using window$ without any complaints
Because China knows they have Microsoft by the ball$. All they have to do is threaten to move a small part of their operations over to Linux and maybe close Microsoft's Beijing R&D office and Microsoft will give them the keys to the kingdom.
I'm guessing that what China really wants is the ability to put back doors and kill switches into communications platforms used there. Microsoft (and other businesses, like RIM) will do that For A Few Dollars More.
Have gnu, will travel.
And since it doesn't seem like it's been mentioned yet, Google can't even stop Amazon, another American company that has to follow all the US rules on copyright and patents, from making their own incredibly successful fork of Android and cutting Google out of the revenue stream entirely. Why does China, who generally takes a "look the other way" attitude even when actual copyright and patent issues are involved, feel like they need to be concerned in this case?
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Not evil enough!
Explanation. Microsoft are disloyal, money grubbing sellout who would give those Communists a long, leisurely blowjob if they thought they could make a few bucks out of it. No doubt Microsoft are happy to do anything to keep the Chinese happy.
Google have higher standards, and to their credit, have told the commies to fuck off in the past.
This is why the dictators are all whiny and butthurt now. Because Google won't let them have their own way and oppress China and the world.
The trouble with the Google/OHA codebase is that it evolves to suit Google and OHA requirements, which are not well aligned with user requirements. For example, there is little to no privacy protection in Android, it's a marketer's delight.
A user-oriented organization like Debian would be a far better guardian of user needs and freedoms than the OHA companies. It's tempting to get a fork along those lines started.
That is also why America needs to stop our reliance on China as well. It is high time for us to stop their dumping, subsidies, and money fixing, or using any of their parts/equipment in our gear.
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
Bill gates and his companies work closely with China and give up all of their technology to them.
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
Android is only "open" in name. Google will put the ban hammer on you if you fork it, just like Microsoft did to squelch BeOS.
http://www.zdnet.com/cn/report-google-stops-acer-from-launching-aliyun-phone-in-china-7000004246/
http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/Google-prevents-Acer-from-distributing-phones-with-Aliyun-OS-1709555.html
Also, forking the SDK is now banned. How is Android open again?
http://yro.slashdot.org/story/13/01/04/1339206/the-android-sdk-is-no-longer-free-software
Yeah!! What's not to love about a mobile OS that has all the security of the Chinese State Department? On the bright side, every back door to the system will be built there intentionally so you'll know exactly where they all are.
Most of my kitchen appliances and electronics are Chinese now. Whos what they are doing when i am sleeping? :-)
Remember the expression: "Don't bite the hand that feeds you" ? Well it's exactly what China continues to do. China offers hardware and we buy it and continue to do so. On the other hand, we make intellectual products and they copy them so they don't have to buy them from us. I wish we could automate more of our manufacturing so we can reduce on dependance on China and make them realise that it's a two way affair, not one way.
'Although the Android system currently remains open source, the core technologies and technology roadmap is strictly controlled by Google.'
Isn't the core technology actually the kernel, and strictly controlled by Linus Torvalds?
No, "core" is being used in the context of the user experience. In this context Linux is not a core technology of Android. Its just the kernel underneath that very few interact with directly. It could be replaced and few apps or users would notice or care.
The core technologies being referred to are search, cloud services and storage, factory installed apps (ex maps), etc. Maybe the store, purchases.
..they should just steal it and make their own crappy version like they always do. They don't have anything that they haven't stolen the original idea from the US to start with! I mean we did pioneer just about everything technology related that most of these devices are based off of including the Android OS.
gimmie google any day over that.
My ism, it's full of beliefs.
As the usual way the Chinese government works, this could be the particular ministry justifying another massive government investment project.
The end result could be a multi-million $ new mobile OS developed tagged something like "Red Dragon" OS which is just a fork of Android. The bureaucracy of course gets ample opportunity to swindle money from the project.
re: I'm guessing that what China really wants is the ability to put back doors and kill switches into communications platforms used there. Microsoft...
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That seems like the most likely answer. China would definitely want central control and a centrally throwable kill switch. But China would also have to worry that some TLA from the USA might convince MS to introduce a few extra features into the mix. China would be better off building its own mash-up OS, preferably one from open source so that they could look at all of the code when they compile the final package.
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So ironic for an iron-fisted government to have to cradle the soft-warm-fuzzy underbelly of open-sourcery in order to get what it needs. Otherwise, they have to worry about Stuxnet like trojans or other hidden gateways and messengers.