Microsoft eyes bigger share of IT business in India

BANGALORE, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research) plans to increase its share of the technology business in India as retail and small- and medium-sized firms step up investment in a booming economy, the chairman of its Indian unit said on Monday.

As Indian companies became more global, they were investing a lot on information technology infrastructure and that was good for Microsoft, Ravi Venkatesan, chairman of Microsoft Corporation India, told reporters.

"I would say that India is one of the fastest-growing markets in the world for Microsoft ... the strength is there in a very secular way," he said, but declined to give financial details.

"So, it's exciting times, like it is for most companies, and the next few years look at least as exciting."

Microsoft already sells its software in several Indian languages and offers technology services to manufacturing, retail and financial services companies in Asia's third-largest economy.

Microsoft set up in India in 1990 and employs more than 5,000 people in the country. In Dec. 2005, Chairman Bill Gates said Microsoft would invest $1.7 billion in India over four years.

Microsoft and other multinationals such as IBM (IBM.N: Quote, Profile, Research), German software firm SAP (SAPG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) and Oracle (ORCL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) compete with India's export-focused software services firms for outsourcing deals.