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Software's controversial move to trigger hourly screen blackouts on Chinese computers using pirated versions of Windows XP.
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The company is now issuing what it calls the Windows Genuine Advantage Program, which tries to persuade users to changing to genuine copies with hourly desk top blackouts and permanent pop-up notifications.
The move has affected millions of users. And major Chinese Internet forums are flooded with angry sentiments.
A Beijing lawyer has taken the issue the furthest. Dong Zhengwei has lodged a complaint with the Ministry of Public Security, accusing Microsoft of invading personal computers without user permission.
He's calling on authorities to assign criminal responsibility for this and halt what he calls an "illegal move."
Lawyer Dong Zhengwei said, "This program has penetrated personal computers and may cause information leakage and low system stability. This is illegal."
But according to the law, there's nothing wrong with fighting piracy. And Microsoft is tough on the issue.
Lin Congwu, manager of client products, Microsoft China, said, "Pirating software is absolutely wrong. There's no excuse for it."
Chinese law stipulates that a party will be considered guilty of illegal intrusion if it disrupts the normal functioning of computers by altering their operating systems.
(CCTV October 23, 2008)
