Despite low absolute sales, Windows is estimated to be installed in more than 90 percent of all Chinese personal computers, according to state press reports.
Meanwhile Gao said it would still take some time to see an increase in the individual sales of Microsoft products, even following last year's regulations mandating the legitimate government procurement of software products.
But the crackdown on piracy was not just necessary for foreign firms, he said.
"The key here is that China is going to need its own indigenous software industry, the piracy issue is a question of life and death for the local software industry," he said.
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