Microsoft Corp and China's No. 2 personal computer maker signed an agreement yesterday to pre-install Microsoft's Windows operating system on PCs to combat widespread Chinese product piracy.
The agreement with Founder Technology Group Corp (
HARDWARE
Founder also will sell Microsoft keyboards, Webcams and other hardware in more than 500 stores across China, the companies said.
"Our partnership with Founder is an essential part of our strategy here in China and around the world," Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said at a signing ceremony.
Founder president Qi Dongfeng (
Ballmer did not take questions from reporters or mention piracy directly in his comments.
GROWING PIRACY
China is the world's leading source of illegally copied software, music and other goods. Foreign officials and business groups say the scale of piracy is growing despite increased Chinese enforcement.
Some 82 percent of software used in China last year was pirated, well above the Asian regional average of 55 percent, according to an industry group, the US-based Business Software Alliance.
SEEKING A SOLUTION
Microsoft, based in Redmond, Washington, has been pursuing tie-ups with Chinese equipment makers to discourage use of unlicensed copies of its products.
In March, the country's biggest PC maker, Lenovo Group (
Beijing-based Founder also will pre-load Microsoft's Windows Live system on PCs equipped with Windows for the next two years, the companies said.
The system includes programs for e-mail, instant messaging, blogging and sharing photos.
The package includes Microsoft's search service Live Search, which could help the company compete for traffic in China with the country's dominant search engine, Baidu.com Inc (
Lenovo also has agreed to pre-load Windows live in laptop and desktop computers.
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