AMD Gives Free PCs To 2,000-Plus WCIT Attendees

Advanced Micro Devices this week gave more than 2,000 attendees at the World Congress on Information Technology a free Personal Internet Communicator, an entry-level PC developed by AMD as part of its 50x15 program.

The move shines a light on both the evolution of the PC and its relationship within emerging world economies. The 50x15 program was launched by AMD over a year ago with the objective of ensuring that half the world's population will have Internet access by 2015, up from about 15% currently.

The PIC is a rugged computing device powered by an AMD Geode processor that last year had a selling price of about $180. The PC has a hard drive, keyboard, mouse, and 56 Kbps modem, but no monitor. Last year Brazilian telecom company Telefonica S.A. worked with local financial institutions to establish lending programs that let users buy the PICs with no up-front costs and payments that stretched over a number of years.

The WCIT, directed by the World Information Technology and Services Alliance, is a consortium of IT industry associations from 67 countries that focuses on the global proliferation of technology and works to create a dialog between various global companies and governments. It's meeting this week in Texas.