Microsoft to open Bangalore centre in Jan

Microsoft Corporation, the world's largest software company, today said it would set up its first innovation centre in Bangalore. It also announced the launch of low-cost operating system Starter Edition in English.

The English version of Starter Edition will be priced at par with the Hindi and Tamil versions, which are sold for Rs 1,200.

The operating system will be available in other languages later. Starter Edition would be launched in other languages as well, Microsoft Corporate Vice-President (Worldwide Public Sector) Gerri Elliott said at a press conference here.

Microsoft's innovation centre will support local vendors as part of the company's global initiative to set up 30 more such centres.

The company, however, did not disclose investments it intended to make in the centres aimed at helping developers, entrepreneurs and governments to develop and deploy innovative software solutions.

"The centre will be part of the Microsoft Technology Centre in Bangalore and will be inaugurated in January 2006. The centre will be set up in collaboration with local stake-holders, including the government and representatives of the industry," Elliott said.

The software giant also said the government should increase its investments in the information technology sector for India to realise its potential as a knowledge economy.

"The government is heavily under-investing in IT, affecting India's prospects to become the outsourcing destination of the world," said Peter Moore, Microsoft's managing director, Asia-Pacific (Public Sector).

Microsoft also signed an agreement with the government for its global security cooperation programme. The programme provides a structured way for governments and Microsoft to engage in cooperative security activities in areas of computer incident response and mitigation of malicious virus attacks. At present, there are 40 governments that are a part of the initiative.

Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates kept away from the media today and met President APJ Abdul Kalam and senior ministers in the government. He visited the health ministry as part of work related to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Gates also visited AIDS patients in Ghaziabad.

During his meeting with Health Minister A Ramadoss, Gates committed his foundation to researching the top 20 infectious diseases in the country and offered to help set up an Indian institute of health (IIH).

"Gates did not commit any funds for the vaccines but promised that the foundation will provide vaccines for common diseases like TB, Malaria and Hepatitis," said Ramadoss.

The foundation will also provide grants and technical assistance to the Rs 100-crore IIH project, which will be developed in consultation with McKinsey and Company. The government planned to set up two IIHs by the next year, added Ramadoss.