마이크로소프트 아시아 태평양 세자르 세르누다 (Cesar Cernuda) 사장이 다음주에 한국을 방문한다.
작년 아시아 태평양지역 사장으로 임명된 세르누다 사장은, 한국에서 사업 진행 상황을 검토하고 국내 모바일 시장을 살필 것으로 보인다.
또한 세르누다 사장은 방문기간 동안 기업 고객들을 만나고 마이크로소프트 코리아의 내부 회의 및 행사에 참석할 것으로도 알려졌다.
최근 윈도우 XP서비스가 종료됨으로써 민간기업과 한국 정부기관 대상으로 이루어진 업그레이드 이후 상황과 정보보안에 대한 논의를 위해 정부 관계자들과의 만남이 예정되어 있다.
오피스 365의 마케팅에 힘을 쏟고 있는 마이크로소프트는 한국에서도 관련 사업 진행 상황에 관심을 보이고 있다.
한편, 이번 방문이 최근 출시한 타블렛 PC 서피스 프로3의 한국 출시를 앞두고 사전조사를 위한 것이라는 시각도 있다.
한 시장 관계자는 “소니의 카즈오 히라이 사장이 엑스페리아 Z2 한국 출시 한달 전 한국을 몰래 방문했던 것과 같이 마이크로소프트사의 새 제품 출시를 앞두고 시장상황을 점검하기 위한 것일 수도 있다,”고 말했다.
<관련 영문 기사>
MS Asia chief to visit Korea next weekSoftware giant could seek to promote mobile products, cloud services
Microsoft Asia Pacific president Cesar Cernuda is set to visit South Korea next week to examine the market and seek expansionary opportunities in the mobile market, said industry sources claiming knowledge of the matter.
A Microsoft Korea official confirmed that Cernuda will be coming to Korea as part of his annual tour to meet the company’s enterprise customers, and attend in-house meetings and marketing events.
Cernuda, who was appointed the new Asia chief last year, will be coming to Seoul around June 10 to see how Korea is adapting to its upgraded Windows platform for personal computers, the successor to its longest-reigning Windows XP, sources said.
He will also likely meet government officials to pledge MS’ support in the transition and in resolving security issues with Windows software during his short stay, while seeking to tap opportunities in the mobile market, an industry source noted.
MS may seek to promote its software and cloud services such as Office 365 more than its hardware such as smartphones and tablets as it likely wants to remain competitive compared to Google.
The president could, however, examine the market to see if it could launch its tablets such as the Surface Pro, which seeks to “replace” conventional laptops, while it remains focused on introducing its Windows Phone in emerging markets such as Indonesia and Vietnam, another source said.
“It could do so given that its hardware products have user-friendly interfaces,” the source said, noting a clandestine visit by Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai to Korea a month before the launch of its waterproof Xperia Z2 smartphone early last month.
However, analysts were skeptical of MS shaking things up in the Korean market, in which Android has the lead thanks to its partners Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics’ smart devices.
“MS smartphones and tablet PCs are not as appealing as those running on the Android operating system or Apple iOS,” said Kim Ro-ko, an analyst from Hana Daetoo Securities.
“The Office suite, the flagship software of Microsoft, has also lost some of its charm since it has been found to be inconvenient to use the word processor and spreadsheet on smartphones and tablets.”
An industry source mentioned that MS may find it hard to boost collaboration with Samsung Electronics, although Samsung makes smartphones powered by Windows, as the Korean tech giant seeks to promote the Tizen OS and reduce reliance on Google or any other platforms.
MS Asia chief Cernuda, a former vice president of MS Latin America, has reportedly been making trips mostly to Southeast Asian markets, introducing its Windows Phone and office software since taking the helm at the regional headquarters in Singapore.
By Park Hyong-ki and Kim Young-won (
hkp@heraldcorp.com) (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)
