Perspective: About South Korea's 'dependency' on Microsoft

A couple of people recently have alleged that South Korea is being pushed around by Microsoft. It's not nearly as bad as it sounds.

"This nation is also a unique monoculture where 99.9% of all the computer users are on Microsoft Windows. This nation is a place where Apple Macintosh users cannot bank online, make any purchases online, or interact with any of the nation's e-government sites online," wrote South Korean blogger Gen Kanai. Commentators on technology news site Slashdot have also tsk-tsk-ed the situation.

The pending release of Vista has prompted many to speculate that it could increase security risks.

To some, this looks like the ugly face of monopolism and bad decisions by government leaders and large corporations. But there is actually a much simpler reason why people in South Korea have so much Microsoft software.

They steal it.

Piracy is rampant in the nation. During my visit to the country two and a half years ago, one of the most entertaining topics was how businesses dodged police raids for pirated software. They sounded like tales from Prohibition.

Do people want to steal software? No, but they worry about costs and staying competitive, and right now many believe the risk of piracy is worth it.

In the city Incheon, near Seoul, police investigators who were empowered to audit software on PCs snuck in through an office building's back exit, according to a source who worked for an Internet service provider inside the facility at the time. A receptionist immediately began to call all the businesses in the building.

"Everyone closed their doors," the former ISP employee said at the time. The ISP wasn't so lucky. Its employees didn't get out in time, and the company had to pay $42,000 (50 million won) in software licenses and fines.

At another building, someone held the door closed while other people shoved laptops out the window, I was told. Two other people I spoke to--the president and the chief technology officer of a growing company--went out for lunch one day, but then had to hide in the next-door parking lot for two hours until a surprise raid ended at their building.

People laughed when they told me these stories, and not just because it was 2 a.m. One of the more popular methods of avoid ing the law apparently is to befriend someone in the government who can divulge the timing of a pending raid. A companywide holiday is then declared.

Do people want to steal software? No, but they worry about costs and staying competitive, and right now many believe the risk of piracy is worth it. Intellectual property rights are also a little tough to enforce sometimes. In Seoul, there is a Samsung Wedding Chapel, but it's not owned by the Samsung Electronics conglomerate. The country sometimes feels like the wild west with big-screen TVs.

"They just close the door, because they know it is the fastest way to get away," said a Microsoft representative at the time.

The government and Microsoft work together closely because piracy creates trade headaches for South Korea's Ministry of Information and Communication. The country depends on exports, and the last thing its government and business leaders want is to have to deal with questions that put them on the defensive. Piracy also hurts the local software market.

P.S.: The government keeps fines levied in raids. Granted, I haven't been back to South Korea, but statistics from the Business Software Alliance, the industry antipiracy and security advocate, show that things probably haven't changed: 46 percent of the software in 2005 was pirated in the country--the same rate as in 2004.

To help get around this, and to develop its own software industry, South Korea is actively engaged in developing a Linux industry. If desktop Linux starts to gain in popularity, this is one of the countries it will happen in.

And why isn't there much Apple presence in South Korea? It probably has something to do with price. Apple computers cost more than typical PCs. The company also likely never targeted South Korea in its early days, so the brand isn't as strong there. Either way, in the mass computer malls around Seoul, the guys at the Apple stores often just seemed to be sitting around waiting for customers.

Biography
Michael Kanellos is editor at large at CNET News.com, where he covers hardware, research and development, start-ups and the tech industry overseas. He has worked as an attorney, travel writer and sidewalk hawker for a time share resort, among other occupations.

More Perspectives

[lingsun]

ust another anti-Microsoft rant with lies and half-truths.

Microsoft has the right to make sure their software isn't stolen or pirated. If S. Korean companies can't afford Microsoft products then they should be using Linux and all the freeware they can get.

[tundraboy]

Wha-huh?

The article was critical of software piracy in South Korea and was sympathetic to Microsoft.

[t8]

Duh

Did you read the story at all?

[ronsonk]

Wrong Reasons

Unfortunately, I think the author has put forward the wrong reason as to why South Korea has a MS monoculture.

South Korea *is not* a monoculture because they steal Windows licenses.

1. They are a monoculture because their government mandated that all online banking and shopping be encrypted using SEEP ActiveX controls; as we know ActiveX can only be used reliably (don't get started on ActiveX through WINE) using IE and Windows.
2. They steal Windows licenses because Windows is expensive, not because they're a MS monoculture.

[thavasa]

how do you know they steal windows licenses? do you have any proofs or sources? Michael said South Korea is monoculture because 99.9% peoples use Windows and you have not proof about this 99.9% peoples stolen Windows licenses

[Gerald Choi]

Computer, IT, Telecommunication, Media

Watch through the wave of information, finding the tide of next big thing

[Gerald Choi]

You put the cart before the horse

Interesting article. However you made one mistake. The reason of MS's high market share in Korea is not in "piracy". It have been high since 1987. Before 1987 Apple was dominator of Korean computer market. But, when IBM-MSDos compatible PC was presented in korea, Apple just abandoed Korean market. They kept the high price police until 1999, and all the PC users in Korea gone to MS compatible PC.Apple Mac's price was $2000 and the IBM compatible PC's price was just $900. Then 1999, the high speed internet revolution started in Korea. Allmost all korean houses have broadband internet connection and 95% the people used MS window PC. That's the secreat of Korea's unbelievable dependency to MS. Piracy is another story. MS intentionally connived the OS piracy to make Korea dependent to MS's sw. MS still connive China's open piracy police. They just want them addicted to Windows. Korea's government isn't happy with this full dependency to MS, and wants to change the situation. However the long addiction to MS is hard to extinguish. MS is now get their long waited harvest in Korea. They patched all windows OS with fee. It's very smart strategy and also Bill Gates' style, too.
I don't have a intention to defend the piracy problem in Korea, but this article's analysis is upside down.
You put the cart before the horse

[coderiff]

Not much of an article

This article is about taking two random facts and making up a story.
The author doesn't seem to know much about the issue and there is no fact or figure backing up his statement.
I'm not denying that there isn't a piracy issue but using it as a main reason for 'Microsoft dependency' is groundless.
He dosen't even get the simple facts straight.
By reading his link to Gen Kenai's blog you can tell right away that he is not a "South Korean blogger" as is stated.

Maybe piracy did have some effect but there are better explanations as well.
It is not a simple issue where there only is one dominating reason.
It is foolish to say that piracy is the main reason.
Anyone in Korean IT industry would laugh at this article.

[engas]

Gen Kanai is not Korean

I just registered to NEWS.com
Menu: Select your country.
Me: Korea... South Korea? Republic of Korea? South Korea is Republic of Korea! Kim Jeong-il is North Korean!!

I wanted to say.
Gen Kanai is not Korean. Koreans don't use name such as Gen Kanai. Maybe Japanese or other Country.
Sorry for my poor English.

[eric4758]

uh, the article outlined the basic reasons.

it was simply an article that stated a plain fact in korea. software piracy is rampant in this country. so if you want to know why it is so then go read a book about it because you cannot cram all the reasons into a 1-page article. come on. be realistic. there are the cultural issues, the me-against-them issue, low regard of the written law among a vast swath of the population, result-oriented mentality where the results justify the means, low opinion of successful foreign companies, software piracy is not looked up on as a real crime, and on and one. there is long list of reasons. how can you simplify a complicated, mind-boggling number of reasons attributed to software piracy in korea. i think korean culture is the leading reason why software piracy will never recede. koreans are richer than ever before but they'll still go ahead and install an illegal copy of windows xp instead of forking over $80 for a DSP version of windows xp. koreans are rich but they're still stuck in their third world (we're a "developing" country so developed countries should help us) state of mind. there you go. now i'll have to write a book to please the nitpickers out there who want to hear all the facts and all the reasons.

[sports fan]

reply to Eric

Hi eric4758,
Good posting. I agree with much of what you said. I've lived in South Korea for years,so I know where you're coming from. Piracy is a big problem in China as well.

Sports fan

[jonesjohnson]

korean piracy

what you say is all true but it's still against the law. we spend billions and billions on R&D and product development and they steal it by copying the CDs on 15 cents worth of plastic.

suppose that our only products were software and other pirateable things (we're getting there) and that we just let it happen as we do in korea and china just because it's "their culture". we'd be in serious trouble. our current in-effective approach just doesn't seem to be a rational response in view of the potential economic threat. these are prosperous, smart people who clearly understand what they're doing.

[jonesjohnson]

korea-microsoft dependency

would someone please ask those nice folks about the millions of automobiles, TV sets, appliances and other things we buy from them without illegally copying or stealing a single one. are we missing something here?

[jlim.cnet]

advise to you

i felt i needed to respond to this article. first of all it's not convincing to me that 99% of windows are pirated. if you buy pcs now these days windows are already pre-installed and i totally can't buy bogus claims in his article. it seems to me that the writer is fabricating stories in his article about how office workers trying to evade law enforcement. can he prove his source that it can't be trust worthy? where's the source? prove and convince smart readers. what's his motive here? is he simply simpathetic to microsoft because it's a us company? it seems his nationalism is his ugly motive. i've read plenty of this kind of articles in us media if it believes anything that threatens us position in the world it wants to sensationalize it by appealing to naive readers. i welcome the day that linux be more used by people around the world than be slaved users of error proned windows. before write anything do your homework and be honest. don't fabricate story to stir up public emotions.