MS Gives Free Licenses To Oppressed Nonprofits 151
victorl19 writes "Microsoft is vastly expanding its efforts to prevent governments from using software piracy inquiries as a pretext to suppress dissent. It plans to provide free software licenses to more than 500,000 advocacy groups, independent media outlets and other nonprofit organizations in 12 countries with tightly controlled governments, including Russia and China."
Re:Not costing them anything. (Score:3, Interesting)
So basically, they're taking a bunch of organizations in countries that probably have a 95% or higher piracy rate, and giving them free licenses.
So it's costing Microsoft essentially squat, but potentially improves human rights in said countries.
Commendable, but not exactly as philanthropic as MS probably wants to come across as....
The kew word is potentially. In reality it does squat, period. The governments can always find other pretexts to raid NGOs. There are other software companies, not just MS, products of which could be pirated too.
Re:Not costing them anything. (Score:0, Interesting)
not exactly as philanthropic as MS probably wants to come across as
To you, maybe, but Microsoft could bankrupt itself inventing a machine that causes piles of food to appear in every village in Africa at the push of a button, and it wouldn't come across as philanthropic to Slashdot. What more do you want them to do? Pay the nonprofits to use their software?
Re:Repost (Score:3, Interesting)
Now maybe they meant only Russia but it doesn't take much to read that statement as applying globally. An ambiguity I'm sure they didn't mind.
Re:Not costing them anything. (Score:3, Interesting)
So, because Microsoft can't stop all potential human rights abuses, they should just do nothing?