Microsoft is expected to announce several contracts and investments in China's education sector tomorrow during chief executive Steve Ballmer's two-day visit to Beijing.
Among the new deals is a joint project with the Ministry of Education, called the Great Wall Plan, to improve computer education in China.
The Business Weekly reported earlier that Microsoft would invest hundreds of millions of yuan in the project involving the ministry and five leading Chinese universities in an effort to improve software education and research in the country. The impending deal comes in the wake of Sun Microsystems' announcement in March that it would donate its StarOffice suite 6.0 to the ministry for use in mainland schools.
Sun's office-suite technology will be available to be replicated and distributed to the students, teachers and administrators of educational institutions governed by the ministry. Sun will also work with the ministry to develop a competitive software industry in China.
Sun's vice-president of global education and research Kim Jones described the venture as a 'major expansion' of its relationship with the Ministry of Education.
The growing popularity of open-source systems is a growing concern for Microsoft in China. Last December, Microsoft lost out on a contract with the Beijing municipal government, which opted for Linux-based operating systems and applications. Microsoft's announcement tomorrow is seen as a bid to stem the popularity of open-source software in the mainland.