At its latest hardware event in Shanghai, China which saw the launch of the new Surface Pro (Surface Pro 2017) and a host of existing products, Microsoft also announced a new version of the Windows 10 OS for the People’s Republic of China, rightly known as the Windows 10 China Government Edition.
China is a difficult market to penetrate for Microsoft and other western firms including the likes Facebook and Google, but it is a massive market where no one can ignore. The Redmond-based company is putting sentiments aside by partnering with state-owned China Electronics Technology Group (CETC).
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Developed by C&M Information Technologies (CMIT), a joint venture between Microsoft and CETC; the Windows 10 China Government Edition is based on Windows 10 Enterprise Edition and will be used by government agencies and state-owned enterprises in China. According to Bloomberg, CMIT will also handle system updates and none of the data of the OS’ performance will leave China.
Three government customers – China Customs (national level), City of Shanghai – EITC (regional level) and Westone Information Technology (state-owned) will be the first to pilot this new OS version. Unsurprisingly, Beijing-based Lenovo will be one of the first Microsoft’s OEM partners to preinstall Windows 10 China Government Edition on new devices.
