Windows Genuine Advantage - WGA in China

WGA in China

On October 20, 2008, many users of Windows XP in China received a black desktop, as Microsoft introduced its WGA system for Chinese language systems, in an effort to combat piracy, which is extremely high in China. This version of WGA is of a more hostile approach as compared to previous forms, as it provides a hindrance to users and trespasses on usability. Since the majority of users in China run on a pirated copy of Windows, many users have experienced what is described as a "black screen syndrome", where the operating system changes the desktop background to a black screen per hour, as well as displaying constant warning messages. Some users have even reported the disabling of Office programs such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Outlook.

According to various polls carried out by Chinese portals such as Sohu.com, QQ.com, 21cn.com, and many others, a large number (over 60% of those surveyed) of Chinese Internet users are hostile to Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) and Office Genuine Advantage (OGA).