Intel Out Of One Laptop Per Child Program

Conflict Causes Chipmaker To Abandon Project; Intel To Continue Low-Cost Laptop Project

(CBS/AP)  Citing disagreements with the organization, Intel Corp. said it has abandoned the One Laptop Per Child program, dealing a big blow to the ambitious project seeking to bring millions of low-cost laptops to children in developing countries.

The fallout ends a long-simmering spat that began even before the Santa Clara-based chipmaker joined the OLPC board in July, agreeing to contribute money and technical expertise. It also comes only a few days before the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where a prototype of an OLPC-designed laptop using an Intel chip was slated to debut.

Intel decided to quit the nonprofit project and the OLPC board because the two reached a "philosophical impasse," Intel spokesman Chuck Mulloy said Thursday. Meanwhile, Intel will continue with its own inexpensive laptop design called the Classmate, which it is marketing in some of the same emerging markets OLPC has targeted.

Both sides shared the objective of providing children around the world with the use of new technology, "but OLPC had asked Intel to end our support for non-OLPC platforms, including the Classmate PC, and to focus on the OLPC platform exclusively," Mulloy said. "At the end of the day, we decided we couldn't accommodate that request.

The One Laptop program was founded in 2005 by Nicholas Negroponte, former Media Lab director at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The original concept was to offer a "$100 laptop," but the green-and-white low-power "XO" computer now costs $188. It runs on a Linux operating system and a chip made by Intel rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

Negroponte told The Associated Press last fall that until OLPC had a machine using an Intel chip, he could understand why Intel would not want to push an AMD machine to customers.

Mulloy said the use of AMD chips in the OLPC machines had nothing to do with Intel's decision to withdraw.

Intel believed all along that there is a need for multiple alternatives to meet the needs of children in poor countries, he said.

"It's unfortunate this happened, but at some point, you have to make a tough decision," he said.

An OLPC executive, Walter Bender, accused Intel of failing to deliver on its promises.

"I think that as an organization, Intel is about competition; they are not about learning," said Mr. Bender, the group’s president for software and content, reports the New York Times.

[achtung-]

Laptops for the shiftless: It was a stupid idea. Hello, the students spend more on dope and booze in a month than any laptop costs. Students at our schools (minorities) tore up their laptops immediately, as they did their graphing calculators. And then cried foul, boo hoo, no one will give us another, because we are Black/Mexicans/Both. So the district did come up with more -- and they tore up their second ones also. The Fourth Reich is coming!!!!

And the American poverty level hasn''''t been updated in DECADES.

Also, what''''s the cost of living in other countries? $2 to them may not be what you think, though I''''ll agree it''''s still not a terrific wage... But the world isn''''t as flat as some think it is and as is said, people need to afford their families too (so if Americans are told not to incessantly breed)...


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hypnotoad72: American poverty thresholds are updated annually. there are many Americans that can''t afford to buy a computer for their child, but there are many many more non-americans that can''t afford to buy food, water, or housing. And there are very few American children that don''t have access to computers through school or libraries. People reproduce because they can, not because they can afford to. Providing very low-cost computers to the poor of other nations will help them pull themselves up to a level where they CAN provide more for themselves and their families.

[hypnotoad72]

That is greed. The computer is a blessing the handicapped. There is poor in America. They wear hand me downs,they ride mass transit,etc..greed in this nation it is the haves vs the have nots..

Posted by MichelleM99
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Nothing wrong with mass transit, or better single person vehicles -- with people consciously driving decently so our vehicles wouldn''t have to be built like tanks, which in turn diminishes their gas mileage rating... mostly because young freaks don''t give a hootiepoo about life and think it''s fun to do what they do... if life means so little to them, let them commit suicide and leave everyone else alone.

As for haves vs have-nots, it''s possible to control one''s greed. And it''s a matter of defining "greed" too.

[hypnotoad72]

Which underdog pays better, poor nations or The Cupertino Fruit Company.

Posted by cyberDJs4
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Judging by their ludicrous prices, that fruity California company ran by hypocrites (at least in terms of ecological concerns, and definitely since, oh, April 2003 or so...)

[hypnotoad72]

pixelslinger: The American poverty level is considerably higher than the average income in many countries. For 1 person in 2007, the US poverty level was set at $10,210. Globally, 3 billion people live on less than $2 a day. American "poverty" can''''t even be compared to international povery.

Posted by Hominatrix53
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And the American poverty level hasn''t been updated in DECADES.

Also, what''s the cost of living in other countries? $2 to them may not be what you think, though I''ll agree it''s still not a terrific wage... But the world isn''t as flat as some think it is and as is said, people need to afford their families too (so if Americans are told not to incessantly breed)...

[hypnotoad72]

Intel did into Negroponte''s idealistic yet flawed program; possibly for reasons more than just altruism, but whatever.

Plenty of disused equipment, sold at a reduced price, with Linux or Microsoft''s special version of Windows sold to such environments, would have worked JUST as well as new, brightly colored pieces of junk that would break in a week anyway.

I applaud AMD''s decision. While they are no longer the speed kings, they HAVE helped remain a competitive force and I was a staunch supporter of them for years. Their processors are stable, and that is a factor to be relied upon too.

But I agree. While helping other countries build their nations and prosper isn''t a bad thing, America needs to be looking after itself as well.

And I know American people who are in real poverty too...

[payasyougo]

a computer, no matter how cheap, does not help a child in poverty. Nothing can replace a good human teacher.

[christiansin]

One more reason I use AMD machines.

[michellem99-2009]

That is greed. The computer is a blessing the handicapped. There is poor in America. They wear hand me downs,they ride mass transit,etc..greed in this nation it is the haves vs the have nots..

[brianbwb-2009]

"I think that as an organization, Intel is about competition; they are not about learning," said Mr. Bender, the group%u2019s president for software and content, reports the New York Times."

You were expecting anything else?

Heck, use an AMD athlon 3200 cpu, 512 mb ram, cd-rw, and in quantity you can probably bring it in under $100.

1 in 5 kids in the US are born into poverty. I''''m not talking ''''they only have 1 car and 2 televisions'''' - I''''m talking a poverty anyone dumb enough to think poverty doesn''''t really exist in America couldn''''t really understand.

FYI - liked or not, AMD''''s decision to ''''step up'''', was also a business decision, and it comes down to dollars and cents.


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pixelslinger: The American poverty level is considerably higher than the average income in many countries. For 1 person in 2007, the US poverty level was set at $10,210. Globally, 3 billion people live on less than $2 a day. American "poverty" can''t even be compared to international povery.

[cyberdjs4]

Intel probably figured out that they will make more money from Apple than they ever could from a non-profit organization.

Which underdog pays better, poor nations or The Cupertino Fruit Company.

[darkfyreaol]

People don''t need laptops to learn. People need people to teach them. And most third world countries are more concerned about food and water lasting the week rather than spending money on a PC.

[random_radar]

Of course, if millions of poor kids got laptops and internet access, we know what they would do--play Runequest all the time. Technology is wasted on the young.

[dredre2k]

Way to go AMD! Help the kids out! How about some low-cost laptops for American kids? This would help to bridge the technology gap here at home. Let the world take care of itself!

[pixelslinger]

1 in 5 kids in the US are born into poverty. I''m not talking ''they only have 1 car and 2 televisions'' - I''m talking a poverty anyone dumb enough to think poverty doesn''t really exist in America couldn''t really understand.

FYI - liked or not, AMD''s decision to ''step up'', was also a business decision, and it comes down to dollars and cents.

[sevenveils]

When the OLPC started its program to create low cost laptop computers for poor nations Intel was one of the first companies to balk at the program and AMD stepped up to the plate. When the laptop looked like a reality and Intel started to crunch the numbers it saw a potential windfall profit and joined up with the OLPC. As kofiananimus points out, Intel''s greed cannot coexsist with the non-profit and now has gone back to competeing with them. With Intel''s huge bundle of cash for marketing and payoffs the real champion, OLPC, could get crushed in Intel''s stampede to a goldrush.

BOO INTEL! Bad Intel! Robert Noyce will haunt your foundries for this decision. I hope Gordon Moore disowns Intel''s upper management. There are alternatives to your products and now I too shall seek them more aggressively. Intel has shot themselves in the foot on this one.

Why not an inexpensive laptop for every child in America?


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Klingon69 : well sure, everyone knows America is one of the poorest nations on the planet. What with all those flat panel tv''s, SUVs, and 3000 sq ft houses, who can afford to buy their kid a computer?

[kofiananimus]

"Intel believed all along that there is a need for multiple alternatives to meet the needs of children in poor countries"... or in other words, Intel wanted their for-profit laptop ($250-$400) to compete with the non-profit OLPC laptop ($140-$188). I imagine their participation with OLPC gave them one heck of a view at what their "competition" was up to. I''ll be looking for the AMD sticker on the next computer I buy... greedy **** at Intell.

[klingon69]

Why not an inexpensive laptop for every child in America?