Close on the heels of expanding its operations, Microsoft India has now set its eyes on penetrating the consumer market in the country.
Microsoft is taking a new look at India's growing consumer market and the company is seeing a huge opportunity in this space, Microsoft Corporation India chairman Ravi Venkatesan said in Bangalore on Friday.
Presently, the global software giant's presence in consumer space in India is "zero", he said.
Pointing out at the increasing trend of "consumerism", Venkatesan said the company had set its eyes on India's burgeoning middle-class.
As PC penetration in India is low and there is "75 per cent piracy", Microsoft is looking for an opportunity in the consumer space, primarily in convergence, digital life-style and PC space, Venkatesan told a conference on "Innovating in India for India, by India", organised as part of Bangalore IT.in tradeshow.
Venkatesan said the company is also addressing the issue of affordability. "We are bundling hardware, software and broad-band and want to make it available at Rs 499-599 EMI," he said.
To address the issue of piracy, the company would come out with new technology and a new payment model, Venkatesan said. "We are trying to drive innovation in products."
A new computer operating system for India -- Windows starter edition -- in English and nine regional languages would be launched in December.
The launch will coincide with Microsoft chairman Bill Gates's visit to India.
Ironically, while India was innovating for the West, MNCs like Microsoft and IBM were finding variations for the country.
"Spending on IT is very low in India. While the Chinese consider PC as essential for the success of their child, it's not so in India, where there is a need to create much more compelling and desirous ways to make people buy PCs," Vekatesan said.
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