Microsoft explains free software offer

By Alastair Otter for Microsoft SA

Johannesburg, 15 Feb 2002

Garry Hodgson, Microsoft South Africa`s customer and partner loyalty manager, says the plan to offer free software to all of the 32 000 schools throughout SA has been in the pipeline since last year, and was not announced in reaction to the National Advisory Council on Innovation`s open source document.

We can`t wait until all players in the market are equal before we do something.
Garry Hodgson, customer and partner loyalty manager, Microsoft SA

Hodgson adds that the announcement of the offer by president Thabo Mbeki during the opening of Parliament took the company by surprise as it was still finalising details of the offer and only planned to make the announcement in the following couple of weeks.

He says the plan, which was formed in December, was presented to Microsoft`s European office in early January for approval.

The offer of free software had been made to Mbeki during a meeting with Microsoft representatives, including Bill Gates, during the World Economic Forum in New York.

Easing the burden

Hodgson says the primary reason for offering free software is that the company is already involved in many local educational initiatives, and has realised the need to lessen the burden on government in providing affordable ICT infrastructure.

"We were being approached regularly by many organisations looking for software. We found ourselves getting involved in initiatives to bridge the digital divide, and as a result, we decided it would be appropriate to offer free software."

According to Hodgson, the company feels it is important to reduce the costs associated with improving education within the country. He notes that it was felt that by providing free software, projects may be able to draw closer together and co-ordinate their efforts. "We felt it important that these projects produced whatever they want without being limited by the cost of software."

Hodgson says that while Microsoft will provide the free software, it is still up to government and other educational organisations, such as Gauteng Online, to make the best use of it. Free software will be available in perpetuity to schools, although the maintenance, support and upgrade of these systems is still up to the schools and government, he says.

Hodgson explains that Microsoft currently has a schools licensing agreement which will be modified to reflect the new offer to government schools. The current schools agreement includes products such as Windows 2000 server, Office, Visual Studio, Encarta and some Microsoft Press titles.

He says many schools had also requested copies of Publisher and FrontPage, and these would be included in the new agreement, although he points out that the exact contents may change if schools particularly request other software. Microsoft will remain flexible on exactly what is included in the schools agreement and will try to accommodate new needs, says Hodgson.

He agrees, however, that initially the offer may benefit more privileged schools as they already have access to hardware or funds to buy hardware. However, he notes that in the longer term, the offer will greatly improve the chances of success for education initiatives dealing with underprivileged schools.

"Gauteng Online has R500 million which will go a little way to the success of the project."

The big picture

Hodgson says that for a project like this to succeed, it needs corporate input and support, and the free software will significantly lessen the burden on government.

Responding to critics who argue that the offer of free software is a marketing ploy aimed at extending Microsoft`s monopoly, Hodgson says: "If people saw the big picture, they would not say this." He believes education in the country is in urgent need of attention and "we can`t wait until all players in the market are equal before we do something".

He says Microsoft will not exclude other players from the market through conditional agreements with schools. "If competitors join in the effort that will be fantastic. It will be good to see the interoperability of the systems."

Hodgson adds that evaluating the cost of the donation is not easily done, although he points out that under the current schools agreement, schools are paying $38 per desktop. He says there are currently 10 000 schools that have the ability, including power, security and funds, to have computers, but he expects this to increase significantly over the coming years.

According to him, the initial licence for schools will be valid for three years, after which time schools can renew their licences for free. Hodgson says free software will be available in perpetuity and he doesn`t foresee any circumstances under which the offer would be retracted.