Text 16861, 95 rader
Skriven 2007-03-10 09:20:32 av mike (1:379/45)
Ärende: Partners in Punjab unite against Microsoft
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From: mike <mike@barkto.com>


http://www.dqchannels.com/content/reselleralert/107030506.asp

Interesting quote:


it was Microsoft who initially encouraged piracy to make its operating system
popular.



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With Microsoft resorting to penalizing the channel community in an effort to
curb software piracy, industry experts feel that it might induce channel to
look at selling other options, including Linux


After having faced the wrath of Microsoft's ongoing anti-piracy campaign, the
IT channel community of Amritsar and Jalandhar are all set to take certain
measures against the company's dual standards towards piracy. The growing
dissent may push the vibrant channel community to keep away from selling
Microsoft products.

“So far there are about eight companies that have been penalized in Amritsar
and the monetary penalties sometimes range up to Rs 30,000. I strongly feel
that a company like Microsoft should not have gone down to this level. They
talk about educating the partners, and yet there is no representation of
Microsoft in Amritsar, it was all being executed by their legal team here. If
the company is serious about curbing piracy, it should first educate partners
and not punish,ö explained, Upkar Singh Sethi, President, Amritsar-based
Association of Computer Entrepreneurs.

Keeping in mind the kind of damage inflicted on the channel community, the
association is now set to put up a strong front against the global software
major. “All our 62 members are going to hold a meeting next week to discuss our
future course of action on this. We are business minded people and do not want
to fight with a big company like Microsoft. But now the company is going way
too far and we really need to do something about the issue,ö he added.

Microsoft has already started issuing letters to the channel community of
Jalandhar as well. With nowhere to go, the channel community of Jalandhar is
now looking at aligning itself with other regional associations who are
protesting against Microsoft's campaign. “There are about eight such companies
that have received letters with regard to the anti-piracy campaign. We are
going to discuss this issue with other associations in the region and decide
our future course of action,ö informed, Rajiv Khanna, President, Jalandhar
Computer Dealers Association (JCDA).

When contacted about the issue Microsoft's official spokesperson said that the
channel community is very important for the company's operations and the
company is ready to work closely with local associations on this issue. “Our
anti-piracy initiative is directed towards eradicating the menace of piracy. We
do feel the importance of channel community and we are ready to discuss future
course of action with the local associations,ö the spokesperson added.

Channel on the other side
Whether it is a global IT product company or a software focused organization,
channel community has played a vital role in terms of addressing the 'last mile
availability' solution for these companies. Imagine the strength of the channel
community working against a company like Microsoft. The results, according to
industry experts, would be more than disastrous.

“Today, the channel are being treated like criminals, though it was Microsoft
who initially encouraged piracy to make its operating system popular. I would
say that over the past few months, Microsoft has been playing with fire. It is
only because the channel community in India is not that organized otherwise it
would not have been easy for Microsoft to impose penalties. Now if these small
associations come together it can pose a bigger threat to Microsoft than any
other region,ö added a market analyst on condition of anonymity.

Winds of change
While dissent in the channel community has been festering for a while now, this
is possibly the first time that regional associations are more than eager to
join hands and are most likely to play a vital role in terms of voicing issues
against a big MNC like Microsoft.

“You never know if we as a channel can create a wave all over the country for
promoting Linux in India. We are the ones who can explain the problems of Vista
to the end-user (eg the system hanging, activation issues, high configuration
requirements etc). Microsoft should not underestimate the strength of the
channel, which is suffering at their hands time and again,ö added a reseller
from Chandigarh.

Additionally, the channel community also feels that piracy is going on
unabashedly even now at the very locations that 'Microsoft sleuths' raided a
while ago. “Microsoft is proudly advertising the names of those retail
locations as 'Partners who have promised not to get into piracy', they need to
actually go and re-check. These partners are not at all clean even now,ö added
a market source.
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