Microsoft funds African PCs amid open source debate

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. is funding computer centres it hopes will reach half a million poor South Africans and argued on Monday that free open source software is not always the best option for developing countries.

Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer told a news conference the U.S. giant would provide free software for IT centres in 284 municipalities in Africa's richest country aimed at those with no computer access.

The software giant would also train staff to maintain and repair the computers in the "digital villages" and to show users how to access the web and Microsoft programmes, he said in Johannesburg, declining to say how much the project will cost.

"Information technology is a grand enabler ... We hope to reach 500,000 people who don't have access to information technology, to put it at their fingertips," Ballmer said.

The launch comes as South Africa faces pressure from some industry groups, led by the first African in space, Mark Shuttleworth, to opt for open source solutions instead of spending tax-payers money on Microsoft applications.

Ballmer said governments should not necessarily opt for open source alternatives over proprietary software like Microsoft, even in developing countries where expensive software can impede the rollout of computer access to poorer communities.

"Governments should be open in every sense, open to look at every alternative," Ballmer told a group of industry players. "It's about open choice not just open source."

OPEN SOURCE VIABLE?

Emerging market peers like Brazil and China have opted to encourage broader use of open source systems like Microsoft competitor Linux, but the South African government says it will judge on an "open choice" case-by-base basis.

"Is open source viable? You tell me what you want and I will tell you why we do it better ... it's enough if you want to pick the less good solution," said Ballmer. "We are competing with Linux and we are going to compete very, very well."

Linux is an upstart system based on the idea that software should be freely available and can be copied and modified at no cost unlike proprietary software like Microsoft's Windows.

Ballmer, who stopped in South Africa on his way to Brussels to meet the European Union's Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, declined to comment on why he requested that meeting and what he hoped to discuss.

Ballmer was also upbeat about Microsoft's ambitions in the Internet search engine business and said it was confident it could overtake Google and Yahoo to be market leader.

"We are not the market leader today...(but) we are closing in on the market leaders in terms of Internet search," Ballmer said.

african amid debate funds microsoft open pcs software source