[ Thanks to Wol for this
link. ]
“The Norwegian government has terminated its contract with
Microsoft, with employment and administration minister Victor D
Norman commenting that the deal had been ‘unfortunate,’ and that
the injection of competition could mean cheaper and (cruel cut)
higher quality solutions.
“The contract with Microsoft, as we understand it, covered both
national and regional government and meant Microsoft was virtually
the sole software supplier for public services. Norman told NRK
Dagsnytt, the state-funded news channel: ‘We think that the
contract we’ve had with Microsoft has in reality given them a
monopoly in a field where we’re better off getting competition.’ So
the position is that Norway has opened up the field for competition
to Microsoft, rather than kicking Microsoft out as such…”
[Editor’s Note: An anonymous reader contributed a related
story from the Associated Press. This story, which we unfortunately
don’t have a link to, has a more Linux-related quote from Minister
Norman that was not picked up in The Register
piece:
“‘The use of open source codes, such as Linux, could promote
competition,’ Norman said in a news release. ‘To make use of
programs based on open source codes a real alternative, there will
be no new Select 5.0 contract with Microsoft Norway.'”]