Microsoft $3 software for developing countries

In the midst of all the earnings reports today, it was easy to miss a press release from Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) that unveiled the Microsoft Student Innovation Suite to be sold for $3 in some part of the world where governments have qualified.

The Microsoft Student Innovation Suite could be installed on Windows-based PCs (provided by the governments) and includes Windows XP Starter Edition, Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007, Microsoft Math 3.0, Learning Essentials 2.0 for Microsoft Office, and Windows Live(TM) Mail desktop.

Microsoft says its goal is "to help close the digital divide." This product, the company says, "will help bring social and economic opportunity to the estimated 5 billion people who are not yet realizing the benefits of technology." By 2015, Microsoft wants to reach one billion people with computing technology, people who currently don't have access to it.

Microsoft isn't the only one that is trying to bring technology to developing countries. Brandon Barker recently reported about the One Laptop Per Child project Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) and eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) help fund. Five million laptops will be sold for $100. Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) and AMD (NYSE: AMD) both have products aimed to bridge the technological divide as well.

Indeed, these initiatives are commendable. This is a good example when business and social goals align. As Orlando Ayala, a Microsoft executive said, "This is not a philanthropic effort, this is a business." Bringing software to underserved countries can also help in lowering pirated versions, not to mention increasing future customer base.