From ITwire Australia:

On Russian state television, cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin tells journalists in a live video interview from the ISS that “Charles said that Bill Gates is also preparing to visit space”

With Charles Simonyi the 5th space tourist, how long might it be before a 6th decides it’s time to make the trek into space – and will it be Bill Gates?

While I can confirm that it sadly won’t be me next in orbit, there has been no confirmation by Gates, anyone at Microsoft or at ‘Space Adventures’, the company that organizes space tourists to travel on the Russian Soyuz rocket to travel into space and dock with the ISS, on any plans or a timeframe for Bill Gates to go off world.

Yet cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin suggests it will be Bill up next the ultimate space thrill.

As reported by the Associated Press, Yurchikhin told journalists: “So the next time someone will be with Bill Gates. For me this is the biggest surprise of our flight.”

Its about time, iPod had been in the ISS some months ago. In this Zune vs iPod cold war, space is definitely a battlefield!

Read more in iAfrica .

[via Engadget & Slahsdot ]