Microsoft's Steve Ballmer to Put the Spotlight on Central and Eastern Europe

Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer is scheduled to undertake an extended tour of Central and Eastern Europe between 19 and 24 May, 2008. The series of visits in the region will be a first for Microsoft's CEO, and according to Vahé Torossian, regional vice president of Microsoft Central and Eastern Europe and vice president, Microsoft International, Ballmer's presence is designed to emphasize the global importance of Central and Eastern Europe. The Redmond company has a strong, continuously growing presence in the region and promises to evolve the opportunities it is offering for what it considers to be the fastest-growing markets on the planet.

"Steve's visit is aimed at turning the spotlight on Central and Eastern Europe and, in turn, focusing the region on the opportunities of knowledge and software economies. We are taking journalists on a tour of the Microsoft Campus at our US headquarters to show them the benefits that Microsoft can deliver to their home countries and the region as a whole," Torossian stated. "Microsoft wants to show the world Central and Eastern Europe's economic and innovative potential, the entrepreneurial spirit inherent in its people and, frankly, what a great place it is to live and do business in."

With the countries in Central and Eastern Europe having adopted democratic regimes for approximately 20 years now, after a long eclipse of communism, the region is booming with the focus on the accelerated growth of dynamic economies. According to Torossian, growth for Central and Eastern Europe is estimated to keep a momentum of at least 5% over the next years. This pace will make it the fastest growing region between 1999 and 2011with a GDP equal to that of China.

"Microsoft is also making significant investments in the region. We have established a global development centre in Serbia, joining the very select group of countries to host such a facility, including Ireland, India and China. The development centre is focusing on Tablet PC and Microsoft SQL Server engine technologies. In Bucharest we have opened the Global Technical Support Centre, where Romanian engineers support European enterprise and developer customers, playing an important role in ensuring our customers' needs are addressed in future versions of Microsoft products. These and other global investments act as an important catalyst, encouraging education systems, stimulating employment, and injecting direct and indirect finance into software economies," Torossian added.