Microsoft Signs Search Pact With Baidu in China
September 23 2015 - 6:40PM
Dow Jones News
Microsoft Corp. and Chinese search giant Baidu Inc. have signed
a deal to make Baidu.com the default search engine and home page
for Web surfers in China who are using Microsoft's Edge
browser.
The deal, announced Wednesday, is one of seven new agreements
publicized this week as Microsoft seeks to make inroads into the
world's second-largest economy, and as China President Xi Jinping
gets set to tour Microsoft's campus in Redmond, Wash., Thursday
with company CEO Satya Nadella.
There are already hundreds of millions of PCs running Windows,
but because of widespread piracy, Microsoft has traditionally had
difficulties extracting revenue from many of these users.
Microsoft will also develop hybrid cloud-computing software with
Unisplendour Corp. and 21Vianet Group Inc., and build out a cloud
service for Xiaomi Corp., a maker of smartphones. The company also
announced deals with China Electronics Technology Group Corp.,
Shanghai Oriental Pearl Media Co., Sichuan Provincial Government,
and the Xi'xian New Area development zone.
Tensions between China and U.S. have flared up as of late, and
Microsoft has been caught in the middle on several issues, from
piracy to cyberspying and regulation. The company is the subject of
a continuing probe by Chinese regulators over suspected
monopolistic practices, and it continues to battle pirated versions
of its software. In 2014, China's Central Government Procurement
Center banned government agencies from purchasing computers loaded
with Microsoft's Windows 8 software.
President Barack Obama last week said he would press China's
leaders to prevent hackers from stealing U.S. corporate secrets.
Mr. Xi is expected to meet with Mr. Obama by week's end.
Write to Robert McMillan at Robert.Mcmillan@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 23, 2015 18:25 ET (22:25 GMT)
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