Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, met this week with a number of high ranking government officials, including United States president Obama, and Chinese president Hu Jintao, according to NetworkWorld.com.
Ballmer raised some concerns with Hu, discussing how only 1 in every 10 copies of Windows in China is legit. Microsoft estimates that 90% of China uses some form of pirated software on their computer, with over half of the countries residents still using Windows XP and Internet Explorer 6 - a claim which is backed up by StatsCounter.com.
With over 84% of Chinese users still running Windows XP and over 50% using Internet Explorer 6, Microsoft addresses the concern that these users may be at risk of worms, trojans, spyware and other malicious software running on their computers. The reason for China still running dated software on their computers is because of piracy. Some users are too afraid to upgrade, in case they can"t bypass the security system on the operating system.
Although the direct quote from Ballmer was not released, a transcript from the White House quoted Obama raising the concerns from Steve Ballmer.
"We"re making progress on making sure that the government procurement process in China is open and fair to American businesses. And we"ve made progress as a consequence of this state visit.
"Some of it has to do with intellectual property protection. So we were just in a meeting with business leaders, and Steve Ballmer of Microsoft pointed out that their estimate is that only 1 customer in every 10 of their products is actually paying for it in China. And so can we get better enforcement, since that is an area where America excels -- intellectual property and high-value added products and services."
Microsoft has been battling piracy for years in America, and has gained tremendous ground in the market.