Back in 2007, Microsoft severely slashed the prices of several editions of its Windows Vista operating system and now it’s the turn of Office 2007 System. However, the company's moves are valid exclusively for the Chinese market. The Redmond giant is attempting to curb the rampant piracy of its flagship products in China. In this context, Microsoft is prepared to introduce one of the editions of the Office 2007 System for less than 30% of the estimated retail price.

According to Yahoo News, the Office 2007 Home and Student Edition will hit shelves at just 199 yuan. Considering that the estimated retail price, or at least the suggested retail price from Microsoft is $149.95, Chinese buyers will be able to get the Office 2007 Home and Student Edition for as low as $30. In this manner, Microsoft has not only made the first special offer for the Chinese market as far as Office is concerned, but also delivered an alternative to pirated copies of the productivity suite. Bootlegged versions of Office 2007 are sold in China for 10 yuan and even less.

Despite active anti-piracy measures and tools such as Windows Genuine Advantage and Office Genuine Advantage mechanisms, Microsoft has been forced to drop prices considerably for both its flagship products in China. Windows Vista was the first in this regard. In 2007, Microsoft started offering Windows Vista Home Basic for just $65.80, representing a 67% price drop, while the Home Premium SKU benefited from a 50% reduction which took the operating system edition down to just under $120.

Jim Lin, Microsoft's public relations manager in Beijing indicated that the new price tags for Office 2007 are designed to make the Home and Student Edition more appealing to customers from a financial point of view. The focus for the Redmond giant is of course the need to deter users away from pirated versions of its software. The Office 2007 Home and Student Edition slashed prices will only be valid until the end of China's National Week holiday.