Sun Strikes Huge Linux Desktop Deal With China

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November 17, 2003 (6:09 PM EST)

Sun Strikes Huge Linux Desktop Deal With China

Sun Microsystems Monday announced a multi-year deal with the China Standard Software Company (CSSC) that will eventually make Sun's Java Desktop System the standard desktop software for millions of machines across the People's Republic of China (PRC).

The arrangement with the CSSC -- a consortium of Chinese technology companies that's supported by the Chinese government -- will put the Java Desktop System on half a million to a million desktops in the PRC per year, with the end goal bullish with a capital B: at least 200 million copies of the software.

Java Desktop System is Sun's name Linux software bundle that includes a graphical interface, the Mozilla Web browser, the StarOffice 7 productivity suite, and other tools ranging from an instant messenger to an e-mail client.

The licensing agreement, which will start at the end of this year, allows the CSSC to deliver its own branded products using the Java Desktop System as the foundation for a nation-wide standard. The deal must first clear export approval from the U.S. government, however.

China, as well as other Asian countries such as Japan, Korea, and Taiwan, have been making noise of late about developing a computing standard based on Linux, rather than relying on the made-in-the-U.S. Windows from Microsoft.

"This really puts us in the leadership role in the Linux desktop market," claimed Peder Ulander, the marketing manager for Sun's desktop solutions division. "Red Hat has all but washed its hands of Linux on the desktop, and although SuSE is doing some good stuff, this deal with China makes us the significant player in the space."

Although the Java Desktop System lists in the U.S. for $100 per desktop user ($50 per worker for existing Sun Java Enterprise System customers), Ulander declined to get into specifics on the value of the licensing deal with the PRC.

"Let's just say that financially, it's a very good deal for Sun," he said.

In fact, Ulander tried to push the financial tally into the background, saying that it was actually more of a technology partnership than a financial windfall for Sun, and that the arrangement would ultimately lead to better business for Sun across the board in the region. "This puts us in good standing in the area," he said.

Linux makes sense in Asia, particularly in China, Ulander said, primarily because of the economics. "In a country where well-paid employees earn just $20,000 to $25,000, companies and government can't afford to spend hundreds on a desktop environment. That's meant only the rich could afford IT."

Linux, he said, dramatically changes the cost structure of equipping computers

Another attraction of relying on Linux as a desktop standard, he said, is that it doesn't drop large sums of money into U.S.-based companies' coffers, something China wants to avoid to retain its positive trade balance.

"Not only is Windows sitting at a price point that prices out users [in China], but that money comes over here," he said.