Taiwan legislature takes on Microsoft

Taiwan's legislature has passed a resolution asking the government to reduce its purchases of Microsoft products by 25 percent this year, a further sign the world's largest software company is running into resistance in Asia.

The resolution, passed on Friday, is an attempt by the island's law making body to reduce Taiwan's dependence on Microsoft, which holds a near monopoly on supplying software to local government offices, a legislative aide said.

Microsoft could not immediately be reached for comment.

The local-language Commercial Times newspaper said the legislative resolution may not be binding because it runs against fair trade regulations in Taiwan. Officials at Taiwan's Fair Trade Commission declined to comment on the issue.

The case highlights obstacles Microsoft has faced in Asia due to the dominance of its operating systems. Most recently, South Korean antitrust regulators in December fined the company 33 billion won (US$34.8 million) for violating fair trade laws, and ordered it to offer two versions of Windows in the country.

Japan's Fair Trade Commission has also investigated Microsoft, and the Chinese government has expressed its support for wider adoption of Linux, both as an alternative to Windows and as a way to support the development of local software companies.

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