Microsoft to Fight Piracy in China via Surface

With the official release of Windows 8 on Friday, Microsoft has created a tablet PC to compete with other similar devices from iOS and Android and even from other manufacturers that will use the same operating system.

In its 20 years in China, Microsoft did not have much luck. While, the Asian giant is the world's largest market for PCs, with piracy rates as high as 77 per cent, the software company is enjoying only a fraction of the revenue it could collect.

Things will hopefully turn out the better for Microsoft with the launch of its Surface tablet, which goes on sale online in China at the same time as a handful of other countries. The Surface is a rare piece of Microsoft hardware and will run the company's new Windows 8 OS.

There are two versions of Windows Surface which have differences from each other, including different price tags.

Surface RT vs Surface PRO

Besides the China launch of Friday, Microsoft will also roll out the Surface tablet on the same day in the United States and Australia. It was designed to compete with Apple's iPad.

Steven Sinofsky, president of Microsoft's Windows division, told media in a speech in Shanghai on Wednesday that although the Surface is bigger than the iPad, it is lighter on the hand because of the way the physics of the design work.

The China launch is an indicator of the importance that Microsoft gives to the huge Chinese consumer market.

"China is a big business opportunity for us. China is also the place where many devices get developed, built, but these days, even more importantly, get sold," The Herald Sun quoted Microsoft Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Great China Region Ralph Haupter.