IBM Corp, which spent an estimated $5m on the rematch between its Deep Blue chess computer and Gary Kasporov, who bowed out fuming from the contest after his defeat last Sunday, is estimated to have gained the equivalent of at least $100m in free publicity from the event. It seems that this feat, rather than the technological aspect, was what won Big Blue uncharacteristic praise from Microsoft Corp’s chief technology officer Nathan Myhrvoid, usually a stern critic, who has been quoted as saying: It’s an IBM team that did it. My hat is off to them.
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