Windows 10 to launch this summer in 190 countries and 111 languages around the world

-- Strategic partnerships with Lenovo, Tencent and Qihu 360 will help hundreds of millions of Windows customers in China upgrade to Windows 10 and spur adoption globally.

SHENZHEN, China, March 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- At the Windows Hardware Engineering Community (WinHEC) summit on Wednesday, Terry Myerson, executive vice president of Windows, Microsoft Corp., announced that Windows 10 will launch in 190 countries and 111 languages around the world this summer. Myerson also announced a diverse collection of strategic partnerships and initiatives with leading global companies across the greater China region, including Lenovo, Tencent and Qihu 360. These partnerships will enable hundreds of millions of Windows customers in China to upgrade to Windows 10, driving adoption around the world through ecosystem advancements.

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Windows 10 delivers new capabilities that will enable hardware and device manufacturers to create technology, devices and experiences for customers around the world, including Windows Hello.^* Unveiled on stage for the first time via a Lenovo ThinkPad YOGA 15, Windows Hello provides instant access to a person's device through biometric authentication using their face, iris or fingerprint to unlock their device and their services.

"China is a global epicenter for innovation and the home of hundreds of millions of Windows PCs today," Myerson said. "The Chinese technical community and Chinese customers are vitally important to the future of Windows 10. We're honored and excited to host WinHEC in Shenzhen and to continue to work with the area's hardware and software companies to develop groundbreaking devices and consumer experiences that will help shape the future of Windows 10 globally. Via our partnerships, we will make it easy — and free — for hundreds of millions of customers in China to upgrade to Windows 10."

World-leading partners enable easy and free upgrades to Windows 10

China is one of the top countries in the world for PC adoption, and easy and free upgrades to Windows 10 will be enabled by partnerships with Lenovo, Tencent and Qihu 360. Myerson was joined by top executives from each company to announce new partnerships to drive Windows 10 upgrades and technology experiences.

Fuyao Tong, vice president of Lenovo Group, general manager of Lenovo China, joined Myerson on stage to discuss the global partnership, close collaboration and innovation the companies are driving together on Windows 10. Lenovo announced it will offer Windows 10 upgrade services at 2,500 service centers and select retail stores in China when the Windows 10 upgrade is available. Lenovo also announced its commitment to build Windows Phones, to be available mid-year 2015 in China via China Mobile.

"As the leading PC manufacturer worldwide, we are pleased to partner with Microsoft to bring Windows 10 to our joint customers," Tong said. "We are also excited to announce that Lenovo is joining the Windows Phone ecosystem with our first Windows Phone mid-year 2015."

Microsoft also announced a strategic partnership with Tencent, the leading social networking and gaming services company in China. Tencent will offer Windows 10 as a free upgrade to Tencent customers on Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 in China via an easy and seamless upgrade. Tencent will create one of the first Windows 10 universal apps for its flagship QQ app, which has over 800 million customers throughout China, and bring its most popular PC games, including "League of Legends," "Cross Fire" and "Dungeon & Fighter," to Windows 10 and the new Windows Store.

"Windows 10 delivers a wealth of innovation, and we are thrilled to make it easy for our customers to enjoy the benefits of Windows 10," said Martin Lau, president, Tencent. "We are happy to be partnering closely with Microsoft to help millions of our current Windows customers easily upgrade to Windows 10 and experience universal apps, including QQ, and other upcoming services across the new platform. Tencent and Microsoft will continue to work together on a number of Windows 10 initiatives, helping bring the excitement of Windows 10 and Tencent to millions of customers worldwide."

Qihu 360, a leading Internet security company in China, announced a partnership with Microsoft to bring Windows 10, for free, to its customers in China through seamless upgrades. Qihu 360 will enable the Windows 10 upgrade with just a few clicks for their customers with accelerated download speeds. As a result, millions of Qihu 360 users will be able to upgrade to Windows 10 quickly and easily.

"Windows 10 will continue Qihu 360's mission to protect computers and make mobile devices more secure," said Zhou Hongyi, CEO of Qihu 360. "We share over 500 million customers with Windows, and we are confident that our customers will be very happy with the Windows 10 experience we're creating with Microsoft. We're excited to deliver this experience to millions of customers in China when Windows 10 launches."

Through a new program with Xiaomi Inc., one of the top smartphone distributors in the world, a select group of Xiaomi Mi 4 power users will be invited to help test Windows 10 and contribute to its future release later this year. They will have the opportunity to download the Windows 10 Technical Preview, install it and provide their feedback to Microsoft.

Hardware innovations enabled by Windows 10

Hardware and device manufacturers have many opportunities to take advantage of new innovations in Windows 10, including Windows Hello, which offers a more personal and secure experience for people and enterprises. Windows Hello enables people to use their face, iris or fingerprint to verify identity and access their devices, supported websites and services more quickly and safely. Biometric data is only secured locally on the device and shared with no one but you. Windows Hello will be available from hardware partners that deliver Windows Hello-capable devices with Windows 10. Spurring availability, Microsoft was joined by Intel to announce that all OEM systems incorporating the Intel^® RealSense^™ Technology F200 sensor will fully support Windows Hello, including automatic sign-in to Windows.

Myerson also shared news for Windows 10 and the Internet of Things (IoT). The IoT space offers an enormous opportunity to device-makers, businesses and consumers, with an estimated 30 billion autonomous IoT devices deployed in the world by 2020. For the first time, a new version of Windows for small-footprint IoT devices will be available for free when Windows 10 launches. Windows 10 will offer versions of Windows for a diverse set of IoT devices, ranging from powerful devices like ATMs and ultrasound machines to resource-constrained devices like gateways. Through key partnerships with the Raspberry Pi Foundation, Intel and Qualcomm, Microsoft will provide compelling options for hobbyists, device-builders and students. Microsoft also introduced the Qualcomm DragonBoard 410C to the Windows 10 device family. It is the first Windows 10 developer board with integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS and a smartphone-class Snapdragon 410 chipset.

Additional details discussed at WinHEC in Shenzhen can be found on the Windows blog and Microsoft News Center. More information on the Windows Insider Program and the Technical Previews can be found at http://preview.windows.com.

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services, devices and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

^* Windows Hello requires specialized hardware, including fingerprint reader, illuminated IR sensor or other biometric sensors.

For more information on Windows 10: http://blogs.windows.com/

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SOURCE Microsoft Corp.