Thailand celebrating launch of Windows 7

Microsoft Asia Pacific Business and Marketing officer Andrew Pickup said the company sees huge opportunities for Windows 7 in Asia Pacific because the region boasts 83 million PCs, of which around 60 percent are Windows 7 capable.

A survey has shown that 60 percent of business users tends to upgrade software every 12 to 18 months, but customers are upgrading to Windows 7 three times faster than they did with XP. Meanwhile, the IT spending compound growth rate for 2008-2013 is around 4.8 percent.

Moreover, this benefits not only Microsoft but also hardware manufacturers, implementers and independent software vendors.

Some studies show that every dollar spent on Windows 7 will benefit the ecosystem by $18.52.

(...) There are three versions of Windows 7 - Home Basic, Home Premium and Professional. The company has seen strong interest in Windows 7 from consumers, with a pre-order promotion offering Home Premium at 2,777 baht selling out within one day.

Customers who pre-ordered the OS can pick it up at the official launch at Siam Paragon from October 31 to November 1.

IT City has offered the OS at a discounted price of 3,777 baht, down from the suggested price of 5,000 baht.

This is designed to test the market's acceptance for genuine software in a country where piracy is commonplace.