Aug 24, 2020 19:00:00

China aims to build a platform based on the domestic service 'Gitee' as an alternative to GitHub

GitHub , a source code sharing service under the umbrella of Microsoft, is gaining popularity as a software development platform in which developers from all over the world participate. On the other hand, in China, where relations with the United States have deteriorated, GitHub alternative services are being sought, and a public-private partnership is planned to build a source code sharing platform based on the domestic service ' Gitee '. Was reported.

Entered Gitee from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, and entered the domestic open source ecological construction and development expressway – Gitee
https://blog.gitee.com/2020/08/17/gitee-gxb/

China is building a GitHub alternative called Gitee | TechCrunch

https://techcrunch.com/2020/08/21/china-is-building-its-github-alternative-gitee/

China sets up Code Cloud Gitee as its own version of GitHub-MSPoweruser
https://mspoweruser.com/china-sets-up-code-cloud-gitee-as-its-own-version-of-github/

Tensions over technology and national security are rising between the United States and China, and in 2019, American government agencies were prohibited from purchasing telecommunications equipment from Chinese companies such as Huawei. In June 2020, Chinese companies such as Huawei and ZTE were designated as national security threats by the United States, and in August export controls to Huawei and related companies were further strengthened .

Although China has achieved rapid economic growth in recent years, the US countermeasures have affected many companies because of the large dependence on the United States for hardware and software. At the time of writing the article, the impact mainly on the hardware was conspicuous, but it is also concerned that sanctions related to software and net services will be implemented in China in the future.

GitHub, the world's largest source code sharing service, is one of the services that can be affected by sanctions by the United States. In 2019, access to GitHub was restricted in countries such as Iran, Cuba, North Korea, and Syria, which are subject to US trade sanctions, and it became known that GitHub restricts services according to American trade law. At this time, China is not subject to access restrictions on GitHub, but in 2013 there is a situation where GitHub is temporarily blocked in China .

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Huawei executive Wang Chenglu said in August of the same year that Chinese software developers depended on open source code and communities following GitHub's service interruptions in some countries in 2019. Pointed out the problem. 'If China does not have its own open source community to maintain, manage and host these open source code, the domestic software industry is very vulnerable to force majeure factors,' Chenlu said .

Therefore , the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People's Republic of China launched a public-private joint project called ' 2020 Open Source Hosting Platform Project '. The project was bid in July 2020 and was awarded by the Beijing University of Technology and a consortium of companies.

The consortium plans to further expand its Chinese service, Gitee, to build a nationwide open source code sharing platform. At the time of writing the article, more than 5 million developers and 100,000 companies are participating in Gitee, and more than 10 million projects are already hosted.

Gitee founder Hong Shu argues that open source development is the only way to raise the bar for China's information technology industry and that there should be different platforms around the world. “We're excited for our years of hard work, and at the same time, we have a big mission on our shoulders and an obligation to move forward with greater courage. We are deeply aware,' said Hung Shu.

by Will Clayton