International Law

Microsoft Holiday Sale to Thwart PRC Piracy

By Stan

Sorry to keep banging on the same nostalgic drum today, but wasn’t this a really great idea that was endlessly debated many years ago? Why the new policy, and why wasn’t this done earlier when domestic critics were savaging Microsoft for pricing Windows out of the reach of most Chinese consumers?

Whatever. I give up. Here are the basics from the FT:

Microsoft has slashed the Chinese price of its Office suite for home users by more than 70 per cent in a promotional campaign aimed at persuading consumers in the piracy-plagued market that licensed programs can be affordable.

The promotion brings the cost of Office Home and Student 2007 in China from Rmb699 to only Rmb199 ($29) - a level less than oneseventh of the retail price Microsoft was recommending for the suite of word-processing, spreadsheet and presentation software just three months ago.

Microsoft’s Windows operating system and Office suite are ubiquitous in China, but the majority of users have long relied on pirated copies. The piracy rate for personal computer software in China was more than 80 per cent in 2007, according to the Business Software Alliance.

Microsoft saw "very good pick-up" in sales for the Office Home suite after halving its price in June and was now seeking to test how consumers responded to additional reductions, said Garth Fort, general manager for business operations and marketing in Greater China.

Full post as published by China Hearsay on September 26, 2008 (boomark / email).