August 4th, 2007
Piracy in China nets them a Vista Price Break
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
You may recall my previous story about how Warner Home Video, unable to beat pirates in China, was offering them a cut-rate $1.50 per DVD price in an attempt to garner sales. And, as we indicated then, it was a decision that seemed … to put it mildly … unfair to consumers in countries where piracy is not rampant. Well, it looks like pirates have gotten Chinese consumers another price break, as Microsoft is lowering the price of Windows Vista in that country … by 50%.
Microsoft Corp. has more than halved the retail price of its Vista home basic computer operating software package in China to 499 yuan ($66) from 1,521 yuan, and the price of its premium package to 899 yuan from 1,802 yuan, effective from August 1. Source: Reuters UK
We Say: Yes, I realize that differing incomes between countries need to be taken into account, but still … it’s obvious there’s more there than just incomes involved in pricing, as a recent global software piracy study by the Business Software Alliance showed that China’s piracy rate had retreated by 10% in the past three years — but only to 82%. 
jeff nolan says:
There’s something else at work here, China is cracking down on piracy in order to force people to pay full retail for Vista. Ultimately China wants to see users adopt Linux but as long as pirated Windows is available for next to free users will not make the jump.
Ultimately, this price cut is less about piracy and more about heading off Linux before it becomes a big problem for Microsoft in China.
August 4th, 2007 at 6:31 pm
Mark says:
I agree with Michael on this one. I’ve heard the Linux argument lately, but I still don’t think it’s anywhere near ready to replace Windows in the mainstream. And China has a huge mainstream.
August 5th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
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August 11th, 2007 at 10:48 am
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August 25th, 2007 at 1:45 am