Microsoft Launches Arabic Software

The launch of Arabic versions of Windows 95 and Office 95 is a major step forward for computing in the Middle East, Microsoft Middle East general manager Ahmed Chami said.

..I think that no one can have any doubt that Microsoft is very serious about this market, he said in a statement.

Microsoft's Windows 95 was released last year with much fanfare.

Chami told Reuters that in addition to the United Arab Emirates the products would be launched in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.

He said that the Middle East was a growing market but the issue of software piracy remained a concern.He forecast revenue growth at 40 to 45 percent a year in the Middle East and Gulf for the whole information technology (IT) community, compared to 15 to 20 per cent in a mature market.

 

I would think that they are booming markets, booming not only for Miscrosoft but for the IT community. They will be lucrative once we recoup our investments, Chami said.

We think these markets are growing very fast compared to more mature markets. They have a lot of potential that has not been exploited or tapped especially because of piracy.

The statement said Microsoft built anti-piracy controls into its programmes, including designs to frustrate disk-copying.

The most important progress has been in the UAE, followed by Egypt. But we are far from being satisfied. Saudi and other countries have to take a much tougher stance, Chami said.

The software piracy watchdog Business Software Alliance (BSA), of which Microsoft and other major software firms are members, has said software piracy losses in 1995 were about $100 million in Saudi Arabia, the highest in the Gulf.