[photopress:home_cinema.jpg,full,alignright]Roger Chen, a Microsoft spokesman in Beijing has said that Microsoft and Sichuan Changhong Electric will explore ‘a wide range of scenarios for digital entertainment needs.’
He added: ‘The project focuses on in-home network digital entertainment — how to connect PCs, TVs and the Internet to provide this digital entertainment experience.’ As Sichuan Changhong is a major television maker you can see how this might work out.
As a part of their deal, Microsoft will become a strategic investor in Changhong, buying just under 1% of its shares for about $12 million. The company is based in the southwestern city of Chengdu.
Microsoft’s decision to turn to China for a development partner reflects the country’s status as a major television and Internet market and a leading producer of consumer electronics.
China has the world’s second-largest population of Internet users after the US, with 137 million people online.
Its population of television viewers is already the world’s biggest at 400 million.
Microsoft and Changhong have been jointly exploring China’s Internet media market since 2004. Roger Chen said, ‘Definitely China is a very important strategic market for Microsoft and on digital entertainment, a major potential market.’
Source: Business Times
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