Hewlett-Packard and Microsoft have separately reached agreements with the Chinese government to offer equipment and support to help cultivate the country's software industry.
HP on Thursday signed an agreement with the Ministry of Information Industry of China to set up a Linux laboratory, as part of the country's Public Service Platform Initiative. The joint laboratory will focus on open-source software development, testing and certification to support small and medium-size Chinese businesses. Over the next three years, HP will deliver $23.8 million (200 million yuan) worth of software and hardware, including high-end servers and networking connections, to build the Linux laboratory.
The ministry also reached an agreement with Microsoft to establish Windows.Net-based technology labs as part of the National Software and Integrated Circuits Public Service Platform. Microsoft will work with both Chinese and international information technology companies to build the labs and serve a large number of small and medium-size Chinese software companies and computer users in China.
News source: C|Net News.com
