Microsoft to donate $100 million in cash, software to Boys & Girls Clubs

NEW YORK - Microsoft Corp. is donating donate $100 million in cash and software to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

The computer industry giant will give $12.3 million in cash and $88 million in software over five years.

''It's a great time to be a kid,'' Microsoft chairman Bill Gates said at a Harlem Boys & Girls Club. ''Working together, Microsoft and the Boys & Girls Clubs are committed to bridging the digital divide and providing all our children with the technology skills to succeed.''

Flanked by Sen.-elect Hillary Rodham Clinton, Sens. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. and Joseph Biden, D-Del., and Rep. Charles Rangel, Gates said the donation is designed to bring technology access and programs to more than 3.3 million children across the country.

Clinton told the children: ''Your access to these computers, if you take advantage of it, can literally transform your lives and the lives of other people.''

Last year, Microsoft donated more than $34.3 million in cash and $200 million in software to nearly 5,000 nonprofit organizations.

In addition, Gates and his wife, Melinda, have made millions in donations through a foundation they established.