14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft is testing a new approach for fighting piracy. The Redmond company is looking to establish an anti-piracy heaven in Hangzhou, a city on the east coast of China. Essentially, the plan for Hangzhou is that it will evolve into a model information technology city, set to stand apart from the rest of China and its rampant piracy rate, making the city no less than an exception to the piracy rule governing the rest of the country. Microsoft has inked an agreement with Hangzhou, in which it has pledged to invest in the local technology industry in order to drive innovation. At the same time, the Chinese city will make tackling piracy and protection of intellectual property a priority.
Alex Kochis, director, Windows Genuine, visited China as the agreement was signed. “While I was here, our Beijing office announced a plan to work with the government of the city of Hangzhou to reduce piracy while Microsoft works to support increased development of Internet new applications and business models for cloud computing in that city. We also announced a second technology center and additional support for existing efforts,” he stated.
Microsoft is looking to specifically adapt anti-piracy measures to the Chinese market. In this regard, one of the aspects of the company's anti-piracy fight will be related to educating the public on intellectual property. Still, the software giant does not see this agreement limited to Hangzhou alone.
“While Hangzhou is a special city because it its the home of Alibaba.com, one of China's largest Internet search providers, our team also announced our hope that we could work to develop similar activites elsewhere,” Kochis added. “I think this kind of work is essential to increasing awareness among customers and users of Microsoft products in countries that have relatively high piracy rates. I believe our focus on education and awareness have been central to the progress we've made over the last few years.”