Yahoo! News reports us that Asian pirates are already selling Microsoft's next Windows operating system code named "Longhorn". Microsoft's new OS is still in the very early stages of development but this hasn't stopped the pirates from already selling it for US$ 1,58. According to Microsoft's Corporate Attorney, because the OS is not a ready product, it's very risky to install it on any home computer:
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The software is an early version of Longhorn demonstrated and distributed at a conference for Microsoft programmers in Los Angeles in October, Microsoft Corporate Attorney Jonathan Selvasegaram told Reuters. Chairman Bill Gates has said Longhorn, which is not expected to be released before 2005, would rank as Microsoft's largest software launch this decade. The software is on sale in the largest shopping complex in Johor Bahru, the Malaysian city bordering Singapore, alongside thousands of pirated programs, music CDs and DVDs. Discs in plastic covers hang from racks in more than a dozen specialized stores in the Holiday Plaza center, even though it has its own police station. Such piracy is rampant in Asia, although the United States praised Malaysia for seizing thousands of illegal discs since May. U.S. trade losses due to piracy in Malaysia fell to $ 242 million last year from $ 316 million in 2001. Selvasegaram said pirates would shut their shops whenever Malaysian authorities launched a clampdown, only to reopen within days or even hours. He said software companies were working with the authorities on the problem, but the police were more concerned about controlling pornography. |
I personally don't see the point of installing an operating system that hasn't been finished yet but there are always people who want to try out new (read: unreleased) things. You can read the complete article here.
Source: Yahoo! News
