14 DAY TRIAL // China wants to replace software and hardware used on government computers with alternatives built locally, according to a recent report.
This effort includes giving up on Windows and other software solutions installed on machines operated by the Beijing government, but also replacing hardware used in these computers with components that are created by companies headquartered in China.
AFR writes that the Chinese Communist Party is pushing for this mass migration to locally-developed alternatives to complete in three years, and the first devices are projected to begin the transition next year.
About 30 percent of the devices used by the Chinese government are scheduled to give up on Windows and other foreign software and hardware in 2020, while another 50 percent is projected to do the same in 2021. Finally, the remaining 20 percent of the government computers will complete the migration in 2022.
Three-year plan
It goes without saying that hardware upgrades will be costly, but the plan appears to be not only responding to the sanctions imposed by the United States on Chinese companies, but also gaining full control over government computers.
Back in mid-May, the United States blacklisted Huawei, blocking the company from working with American companies. The sanctions forbid Huawei from using software and hardware built in the United States, such as Windows and Android.
While at first glance the migration off foreign software and hardware could be a huge blow to American companies like Microsoft, it’s important to know that all these firms will still be allowed to sell their products to customers in the private sector. The migration only concerns government computers, albeit some are worried that the Beijing authorities could at some point announce more nationwide sanctions that would eventually hurt their businesses.
Specifics on the alternatives that China wants to use are still vague, but there’s a chance Windows would be replaced with a custom Linux-based operating system, while the rest of the software would be created by domestic developers.