Microsoft and Xiaomi may seem like unlikely bedfellows, but they are currently in the process of expanding their global partnership as the former continues to develop and improve their mobile app capabilities while the latter looks for new ways for their users to have better communication and collaborative features. The latest announcement is that Xiaomi Android smartphones and tablets will come pre-installed with Microsoft products and that the Chinese OEM is buying around 1,500 patents from the US tech giant in preparation for a future global launch.
Starting September of this year, Xiaomi Android devices will have Microsoft apps pre-installed, including Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook, and Skype. The devices that will be part of this partnership include Mi 5, Mi Max, Mi 4s, Redmi Note 3 and Redmi 3, and probably all other future Xiaomi devices as well. Some offerings may depend on the device, the region or even the mobile operator, but the basic ones should not be a problem. And anyway, most people who work on their mobile devices will probably more or less use these apps anyway.
The other major news is that Xiaomi is reportedly buying around 1,500 patents from Microsoft, as they plan to expand their market into other regions, with the ultimate goal of finally going into the US market. This is also in line with Microsoft’s business goal of collecting royalties for their products, particularly those on the Android platform, as they believe that Google has been using some of their technology.
Now as to how much these 1,500 patents will cost, that is still undisclosed at the moment. And whether this will in anyway affect the antitrust investigations against Microsoft in China, for software bundling, that is still unknown at this time. What is known is that Xiaomi owners will not have to download the Microsoft apps individually anymore come September.
SOURCE: Xiaomi/Microsoft
VIA: Wall Street Journal
