Lenovo Inks $1.2 Billion Windows Deal

By Geoff Duncan April 18, 2006

Software giant Microsoft and Chinese computer maker Lenovo have entered into a $1.2 billion agreement for Lenovo to pre-install Windows operating systems on its computers during the next year, including systems to be sold in China, where Lenovo is the leading computer manufacturer. Lenovo’s deal to pre-install legitimate copies of Windows on new computers is part of the two companies’ global efforts to combat software piracy.

Lenovo plans to pre-install Windows on its computers worldwide, but a considerable portion of those machines will be sold in China, where rampant software piracy has stunted development of western software enterprises like Microsoft. By ensuring new systems are sold with legitimate copies of Windows pre-installed, the companies hope to take some incentive away from pirates.

Although the overall impact of the $1.2 billion deal on Microsoft’s overall finances isn’t clear (since it would supersede existing deals between Lenovo and Microsoft: the companies describe the deal as “reaffirming” existing deals rather than establishing a new one) the amount represents about 10 percent of the annual revenue posted by Microsoft’s Windows division during its most recent fiscal year.

According to Lenovo Chairman Yang Yuanqing, speaking at a press event at Microsoft’s Redmond campus yesterday, about 70 percent of Lenovo’s Chinese customers are choosing PCs with Windows pre-installed; that number has risen from just 10 percent prior to Lenovo’s licensing agreements with Microsoft.

Microsoft has also announced recent deals with other Chinese PC makers: TCL Group has announced a $60 million Windows licensing arrangement, China’s Tsinghua Tongfang Co., (China’s third largest PC maker) said it would spend $120 million on Windows over the next three years, and last week China’s Founder Technology Group, China’s second-largest PC maker, announced a three-year, $250 million Windows licensing deal.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Lenovo

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

Computing

Wholesale laptop deals: How to buy cheap computers in bulk

Three Asus laptops set up on a counter.

If you need to furnished an entire office or classroom with laptops, monitors, or workstations, regular laptop deals from the major retailers just aren't going to cut it. You need extensive discounts on hardworking machines. Thankfully all of the major laptop brands have outlet sites focused specifically on major price cuts and refurbished products. Here are the best online options for wholesale laptop deals.
Wholesale laptops deals from Lenovo Outlet

Lenovo Outlet is a special section of Lenovo's site that focuses on cheap new and refurbished laptops. There are a lot of Lenovo laptop deals, including Lenovo's Notebook, IdeaPad and even the powerful ThinkPad line. All of the renewed laptops have been Certified Refurbished, meaning Lenovo themselves gave the laptops a once-over and decided they're good as new. If you think you'll be a repeat customer, you can sign up for , which gets you access to Lenovo's private business site, which has exclusive deals on bundles.

Computing

Lenovo ThinkPad deals: Save over $1,000 on the classic laptop

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Nano Gen 3 front angled view showing display and keyboard.

Lenovo has long been one of the best laptop brands, and a major reason for that is its ThinkPad lineup. The ThinkPad is a great lineup to turn to if you’re in search of something that can compete with the best laptops yet remain affordable at the same time. Lenovo is constantly offering up savings on ThinkPad models, and right now we’re seeing ThinkPad deals that will give even the best laptop deals a run for their money. We’ve rounded up all of the best Lenovo ThinkPad deals to make shopping for one more convenient. Below you’ll find the best ways to save on a new Lenovo ThinkPad, as well as some information on why each model might be right for you.
Lenovo ThinkPad L14 (Gen 3) — $600, was $1,839

Affordability isn’t always front and center with the ThinkPad L14, but this deal sees its price dropped into the range of many of the best budget laptops. This makes it a bit of a steal, as you’ll be getting an Intel i5 processor, 16GB of RAM, and 256GB of super speedy solid state hard drive capacity. The ThinkPad L14 comes with Windows 11 pre-installed, and it has a fingerprint reader for security. You’ll also get all-day battery life with the L14, and it even has built-in 4G LTE connectivity so you can always stay up and running like a smartphone.

Computing

This Lenovo ThinkPad laptop with 32GB of RAM is 35% off right now

lenovo thinkpad t16 laptop deal april 2024 promotional render

Lenovo often has some of the best laptop deals around with the current price on the Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 2 one of the more appealing right now. Usually priced at $2,069, it’s down to $1,345 for a limited time only. Granted, the original price is one of Lenovo’s estimated value system prices so it may be overly optimistic but whatever the true discount, $1,345 is a great price for a system packed with great hardware. If you want to learn more about it, scroll down while we take you through everything.

Why you should buy the Lenovo ThinkPad T16
Lenovo is one of the best laptop brands for business laptops and the Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 2 is a perfect example of that for work purposes. It has an AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 7840U processor along with a huge 32GB of memory. There’s also 1TB of SSD storage so you won’t run out of room for all your most valuable files.