I think the issue here is <span style="font-weight: bold;">unethical business practices</span> from Microsoft.<br>
<br>
Why are they hiding behind the ignorance of government officers in
developing countries. I sent a mail asking Ministry of Education to
provide what this 'free computer technology' is but i have not seen a
response. <br>
<br>
It's certainly possible that many OSS products will eliminate their
proprietary competition, but that's the nature of competition. If OSS
approaches pose a significant threat to proprietary development
approaches, then proprietary vendors must either find ways to compete
or join the OSS movement.<br>
<br>
It is extremely unethical to tweak the concept of free so as to create confusion while marketing. <br>
<br>
In OSS it is freedom. <br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br><br><div><span class="gmail_quote">On 5/30/07, <b class="gmail_sendername">alice</b> <<a href="mailto:alice@apc.org" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">alice@apc.org</a>> wrote:
</span><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<br><br>-------- Original Message --------<br>Subject: Re: [Idlelo2] M$ Vendor Lockin In Kenyan Schools<br>Date: Wed, 30 May 2007 15:00:27 +0200<br>From: Derek Keats <<a href="mailto:dkeats@uwc.ac.za" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">
dkeats@uwc.ac.za
</a>><br><br>Another way to view the same information......<br><br><br>Microsoft pulls marketing coup in Kenya<br><br>School children in Kenya will grow up dependent on foreign-created<br>proprietary software, transferring the innovation transactions arising
<br>from educational use of technology out of Africa to the developed world<br>thanks to the latest marketing Coup from license vendor Microsoft. The<br>digital freedom of Kenyan children has been given away in this manner in
<br>the misguided belief that free licenses will give more access to<br>computer technology.<br><br>Microsoft Corporation pulled off the coup by playing on the ignorance of<br>the Ministry of Education about alternatives to Microsoft licenses that
<br>provide as good or better access to software while respecting the<br>freedom of Kenyan school children. Higher education education<br>institutions are also to be victims of the ploy to gain control of<br>future markets for licenses to Microsoft software.
<br><br>Under the arrangement, Microsoft will work with organisations currently<br>in charge of supplying computers to the institutions to first install<br>the programmes on the machines, thus creating its future customers with
<br>the bulk of the cost of this marketing being born by the victims.<br><br>Learning institutions in the developing world have often avoided<br>becoming marketing victims to license vendors such as Microsoft because<br>
of license fees that are locally unaffordable. Lacking awareness of the
<br>long term implications, it seems that education institutions in<br>countries such as Kenya are easy prey to this latest marketing strategy<br>from one of the world's most predatory near-monopolies.<br><br>With the free licenses, schools can use the computer technology to
<br>create the next generation of unfree dependents and customers for<br>Microsoft licenses among teachers and students. This type of loss leader<br>is common among companies entering a new market.<br><br>Mr Mark East, the general manager for Microsoft's International
<br>Education Solutions Group, said the main drive for offering the fees<br>waiver was the lack of computer uptake in the region's education system.<br>He made no mention of the tremendous marketing value for Microsoft of
<br>this ploy, nor did he mention the cost to Africa of transferring all of<br>its innovation transactions out of the continent.<br><br>Mr East said the company learnt a lesson from Ghana, where an attempt to<br>use school teachers to market Microsoft licenses to school children ran
<br>into trouble. "In Ghana our approach first was to build capacity for<br>teachers but we came to learn that even after training the teachers they<br>still didn't have this basic tool—the computer," he said. His words
<br>
somehow create the impression that having access to software without<br>cost, which is also available in the form of Free and Open Source<br>Software (FOSS), somehow leads to the de novo generation of computers.<br>It remains unclear how this de novo computer generation works, but
<br>perhaps Steve Balmer will come and invoke some form of hitherto unknown<br>magic.<br><br><br>On Wed, 2007-05-30 at 09:06 +0300, Dorcas Muthoni wrote:<br>> Microsoft waives software license fees for schools<br>>
<br>
> Schools in Kenya will have more access to computer technology, with a<br>> free license deal from the world's leading software producer.<br>> Microsoft Corporation forged the deal through the Ministry of Education
<br>> to allow local schools and higher education institutions to use the<br>> company's software free of charge.<br>> Under the arrangement, Microsoft will work with organisations currently in<br>> charge of supplying computers to the institutions to first install the
<br>> programmes on the machines .<br>> Learning institutions in the developing world have often been held back<br>> from using legitimate copies of common software such as Microsoft's<br>> Windows operating system and Office application suite because of license
<br>> fees that are locally unaffordable.<br>><br>> With the free licenses, schools can use the computer technology to build<br>> capacity among teachers and students.<br>> Mr Mark East, the general manager for Microsoft's International Education
<br>> Solutions Group, said the main drive for offering the fees waiver, was the<br>> lack of computer uptake in the region's education system.<br>><br>> Mr East said the company learnt a lesson from Ghana, where its approach to
<br>> increasing computer usage in schools ran into trouble.<br>> "In Ghana our approach first was to build capacity for teachers but we<br>> came to learn that even after training the teachers they still didn't have
<br>> this basic tool—the computer," he said.<br>><br>> More>><br>> <a href="http://bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1232&Itemid=4298" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">
http://bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1232&Itemid=4298
</a><br>><br>><br>> _______________________________________________<br>> Idlelo2 mailing list<br>> <a href="mailto:Idlelo2@fossfa.net" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">
Idlelo2@fossfa.net</a><br>> <a href="http://mailman.dst.gov.za/mailman/listinfo/idlelo2" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">
http://mailman.dst.gov.za/mailman/listinfo/idlelo2</a><br>--<br>-------------------<br>Prof Derek W. Keats<br>Executive Director, Information and Communication Services<br>The University of the Western Cape, P. Bag X17, Bellville 7535, South
<br>Africa<br>Email: <a href="mailto:dkeats@uwc.ac.za" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">dkeats@uwc.ac.za</a> Skype: dkeats Yahoo: derekkeats<br>Web: <a href="http://ics.uwc.ac.za" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">
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</blockquote></div><br>