We asked Microsoft for clarification around the material implications of getting a "non-genuine" free upgrade to cheap microsoft software , and got a "no comment" in response.

As you may often hear before, Microsoft has long had an issue with Windows piracy, particularly in developing markets. In 2011, then-CEO Steve Ballmer estimated that just 10 percent of users in China were actually paying for Microsoft software. Rather famously, one of many reasons that Or windows 7 had such a massive share of the desktop market for a lot of years was due to rampant piracy in China. A more recent study by the BSA states that 74 percent of business software in China is unlicensed.

However, based on Myerson, it's time to "re-engage" with Chinese users of Windows and that means a free upgrade to Windows 10, even if you're a pirate. We do not yet know how the program is going to be implemented, but presumably it's an extension of the previously announced program, that will see buy office 2010 professional offer free upgrades to Windows 10 throughout the first year of availability.

The arrival of Windows 10 heralds a different way to do business for Microsoft. While Windows licenses have historically been an enormous income source for Microsoft, it's now moving towards a more service-based model; instead of a large up-front license cost for Windows, Microsoft will instead leverage services for example Skype, Office 365, and Software Assurance subscriptions. For this new modus operandi to achieve success, it's very important that cheap office 2013 professional plus gets everyone to the same common platform Windows 10 rather than a bunch of fractured, older os's. A totally free upgrade across the board, including an armistice using the pirates, will be very good at moving everyone to Windows 10.