SEOUL — The Web’s second decade will be vastly different from its first, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates told South Korean President Lee Myung-bak during a Tuesday meeting.According to a statement from Blue House, the presidential residence, Microsoft, the South Korean government and South Korean industries will invest a combined $313 million in Korean information technology and infrastructure for vehicles, games and education.
Hyundai Motor Inc. and Kia Motors Corp. already have announced plans to incorporate Microsoft’s in-car software into future automobile models. The software allows users to control electronic gadgets like stereo systems and cellular phones with voice commands. An exclusive software deal with Ford Motor Co. in the U.S. expires in November.
The Microsoft-Korea accord seems to be part of Lee’s national economic plan to boost growth through deregulation of industry and increasing foreign investment. According to a Blue House statement, Gates told the president he envisioned new IT deals boosting the country’s economic growth by as much as $6.9 billion during the next five years.
Gates also appeared at an event sponsored by South Korean television network SBS, where he touted the future of human-software interaction. He cited as an example computers that now can recognize and act on human voice commands.
South Korea is not the only Southeast Asian country in which Microsoft plans to invest. According to a statement released Tuesday by the Redmond, WA-based software giant, the company will invest $280 million in a research-and-development center to be built in Beijing. Microsoft also plans to double its Chinese research staff to 3,000 people within three to five years, the statement said.
