Gates open to government business
By Aleksander Nowacki
Amidst a global publicity drive to keep its deteriorating share of the public-procurement market, Microsoft founder and chairman of the board Bill Gates is making his second visit to this country on Wednesday of this week. Earlier this month, the company's CEO Steve Ballmer hosted a Government Leaders' Forum in Rome, the first such event in Europe.
The Rome conference, designed to showcase governments' use of its technology, featured delegations from this country's Finance Ministry and the customs department to present the system using Microsoft server technology. Commentators see the conference as an attempt to turn around the trend that has seen public-sector institutions opt for "open-source" solutions.
In May this year, Steve Ballmer is said to have interrupted his holiday to go and lobby the municipal government of Munich for the sake of a paltry €15 million contract. His attempt failed, and the German municipality has abandoned Windows in favor of Linux-based solutions. It was a matter of principle, the Munich authorities said, as it is easier to look for holes in open-source software.
Bill Gates' visit should be seen in the context of the threat that such criticism presents to the software giant's position on the public-procurement market, observers say. In June, Microsoft signed a high-profile deal with Siemens Business Services (SBS) to develop e-government solutions. Since July 1, the firm has specific teams to deal with sales and relations to governments. Furthermore, the Rome conference is widely seen as "quite a solid indication that the foundation for their business in the government space is being shaken," according to David Burger of SuSE Linux of Nuremberg, Germany.
It would seem, however, that Microsoft Polska remains largely unfazed by the company's troubles elsewhere. When Gates visited Poland earlier this year, he was told by Prime Minister Leszek Miller that the government would welcome Microsoft's help in setting up a system analogous to the world's first comprehensive e-government solution "UK Gateway." According to Mirosław Kaliński, the head of the public sector division at Microsoft Polska, it is difficult to estimate the total value of public-sector contracts the company has in this country. He went on to reject claims that the Rome conference was an indication of Microsoft's nervousness.
Security is not a problem, he said, as government institutions can gain access to code. According to Microsoft CEO for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Jean-Philippe Courtois, the government use of open-source software was "still quite limited."
"We do not expect "open-source" solutions to replace our systems in the e-government sector any time soon," Courtois said. So far as this country is concerned, he may well be right.
