Koreanische Regierung „verkaufte ihre Seele an ActiveX“

Die Aversion des Hochtechnologielandes Korea (ich meine den Süden) gegen Microsoft Windows Vista könnte größer nicht werden. Nicht nur gibt es eine PR-bezogen unangenehm aussichtsreiche Sammelklage, der Ton wird insgesamt klirrender: ‘Open Web’ Movement Forces Government to Open Up to Non-MS Systems Aus dem Artikel bei The Korea Times vom 11.2.:

Kim Kee-chang, who teaches at Korea University’s law school, is filing three compensation and criminal suits against the Ministry of Information and Communication and the Korea Financial Telecommunication & Clearing Institute (KFTC). Kim claims that the agencies have neglected their duty of preventing a monopoly for Microsoft’s Windows operating system and Internet Explorer browser.

In his most recent action, Kim and his Open Web group have assisted in a 10-billion-won compensation suit against the KFTC. The suit is to be filed this week by Pay Gate, an online payment solutions company that sells open-platform Internet banking certificate solutions.

„We are going to shatter them completely,’’ said Kim, 44, referring to the KFTC, an Internet banking mediator that has stuck to Microsoft platforms only. „We are going to help Pay Gate as an auxiliary party. Our lawyers will brief the judges on how evil the KFTC has been.’’

Pay Gate has focused on developing open-platform payment solutions. But as the government and the KFTC are forcing the banking industry to adopt the exclusively Microsoft-oriented platforms, the company has lost many business opportunities, with an estimated worth of tens of billions of won, the company claims.

Zur besseren Einschätzung: 10 Milliarden Won sind in etwa 8’000’000 Euro, also noch mehr schlechter PR (wenn ich mich bei den vielen Nullen nachts um drei nicht verzählt habe), vermutlich dennoch nur Peanuts für die Bank. Dennoch, es hackt. Auf der Korean Studies Discussion List (bei koreanstudies.ws, durchsuchbar) wird das ganze so bewertet: „completely dependent […] on bad technology“.

Many members of our List must be using Apple, Linux or Firefox and will therefore have realized years back that they could not do anything useful with most Korean sites, especially when financial transactions are involved, because only Microsoft platforms allow the use of the notorious Active X plugins, that have long been actively encouraged by the Korean government. They might like to know that there are (very faint) signs of revolt. The first sign I noted was an article in the Korea Times of February 11,
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200702/kt2007021117420210440.htm

but there had in fact already been an article a few days earlier, and even last year those in the know had begun campaigning, http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200702/kt2007020518003910220.htm

The irony is that the new Microsoft Vista is designed to block the use of Active X and the government authorities are now desperately trying to prevent people in Korea installing it because then they will find out how completely dependent they have become on bad technology. There is ample room for conspiracy theories as to just why Korea sold its soul to Active X (or rather to MS) and they will be focussing on the less than clearly identified Mr Kim. It will be interesting to see what happens, but it is sad to see the usual response appearing, along the lines of „it would cost too much to change, and after all, most Koreans are perfectly happy with Microsoft.“ I think that this issue is of some importance to us on this list, since quite a few might well want to be able to do online business with Korea without being forced to change computers or systems.

Das verzweifelte daran hatten wir bereits behandelt. Dazu passt, was man bei unifx.net schon länger nachlesen kann: die koreanische Saga vom Land, das offene Betriebssysteme und gerade auch Linux liebt, wie man gemeinhin glaubt: Stimmt alles nicht, von Augenwischerei abgesehen.

Spannend. Ich wünschte ich könnte koreanisch, um das besser zu verfolgen.

[Danke Niels!]