China Not Rushing to Install Windows 10, Pirated Windows 7 Still Good for Most Users
Microsoft introduced Windows 10 with much fanfare pretty much all over the world and this time the company hasn't hosted just a single launch event, but several ones across the globe in an attempt to upgrade the majority of users to the new OS as fast as possible.
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As far as Chinese users are concerned, statistics show that local interest in Windows 10 is not at all overwhelming and many actually prefer to stick to their current OS than to upgrade.
Data provided by StatCounter for the month of August 2015 shows that Windows 10 has a share of only 3.18 percent in China, while Windows 7 continues to be number one.
Seeing Windows 7 on the leading position is not at all surprising, but its market share certainly is, especially when taking into account that both Windows 8.1 and Windows 10, which are successors to the operating system launched in 2009, are now available.
Windows 7 has a share of 60.03 percent, so it appears that the arrival of Windows 10 is not at all a threat for its dominance. Windows XP doesn't seem to be bothered by Windows 10's launch, as it maintains its 23.89 percent share too.
Windows 10 and China piracy
One of the reasons Windows 10 is not at all very successful in China is piracy, as many computer users in the country are running illegal copies of Windows on their PCs.
Cracking Windows 10 is already possible, but the methods that are currently being used require a bit more work, so it takes a while until the operating system lands on everyone's computer. On the other hand, Windows 7 and Windows XP are both extremely easy to crack and this is clearly a reason to hold on to them until someone finds an easy method to do use Windows 10 without paying for a license.
Piracy levels in China remain very high and Microsoft itself knows this very well. Former CEO Steve Ballmer said a couple of years ago that 9 out of 10 Windows 10 licenses in China were pirated, so there's no doubt that Windows 10 has a really tough job.
We've reached out to Microsoft to ask about the anti-piracy fight in China and will update the article should we receive an answer.
