China Won't Upgrade from Windows XP; Cites High Cost of Windows 8 (MSFT)

Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) may be halting support for Windows XP, but that doesn't mean all users will immediately upgrade to Windows 8. One of those customers happens to be China. As in, "the country of."

Sky.com reported earlier Wednesday that China will stick with Windows XP for now and use domestic security companies to provide patches from here on out. The reason is cost. One senior official, Yan Xiaohong, said upgrading to Windows 8 would be fairly expensive. He continued, Security problems could arise because of a lack of technical support after Microsoft stopped providing services, making computers with XP vulnerable to hackers.

While around 18 percent of PCs in the U.S. run XP, the number is closer to 70 percent in China.

So, should Microsoft simply offer Windows 8 (which runs £84 in China) for free to the government? Remember, there's always the chance that government workers will upgrade their own devices to Windows 8 after working with the operating system at work.

Shares of Microsoft are down about 1 percent Wednesday.

You May Also Be Interested In

• Microsoft's (MSFT) OpenAI Partnership Could Face EU Antitrust Investigation, Sources Say - Reuters
• Magnificent 7 stocks may soon see wave of investment dollars from largest US funds
• Active options: TSM DJT MSFT MU GOOG BAC PLTR COIN PFE