When Google decided to move most of its China-based search operations to Hong Kong earlier this year, Chinese authorities were not happy. The state-run news agency Xinhua reacted with a post with the headline, “China Says Google Breaks Promise.” Yesterday Xinhua reported that China has put action behind its words, announcing that a desktop version of a homegrown Chinese operating system may be released in October.
“After concerns about U.S. surveillance and a monopoly prove of Microsoft, there is some good news,” wrote Xinhua yesterday in a release stating that an official of the Chinese Academy of engineering said that the new OS will first be seen on desktop devices and then expanded to mobile devices. The news was initially reported in the People’s Post and Telecommunications News.
The official, Ni Guangnan, heads a Chinese OS development alliance that faces obstacles of dwindling research funds and conflicting developers, according to the news agency. The end of Windows XP and the government’s ban on Windows 8 have opened the door to domestic rivals.
“Our key to success lies in an environment that can help us compete with Google, Apple, and Microsoft,” Ni told the trade paper.
