Investment Projects
Thursday, October 02, 2008
> Microsoft opens R&D center of excellence in France
Microsoft today announced its plan to open a new European Search Technology Centre with three centres of excellence : Paris, London and Munich.
The centre will be focused on developing a world-class search offering and will tap into local expertise and fuel local innovation with job opportunities that will help reinvent the European consumer online and search experience, notably in the French market.
Speaking at an event in Paris, Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, said, “To compete in a global, innovation-driven economy, we need to draw on the world’s smartest, most creative minds. Increasingly, we are finding the talent we need here in Europe. To tap into that talent, we’ve invested in research and development across the region and today, Europe is second only to the United States in the number of engineers and researchers we have working on creating innovative products and services."
In France, the Invest in France Agency and the Ile-de-France economic development agency helped and supported Microsoft with its project. "Microsoft’s decision to create an important R&D centre dedicated to search in Europe, with a strong presence in France, is a first which we salute,” said Christine Lagarde, the French Minister of Finance, “This is good news for the European Union, which decided long ago, with the Lisbon strategy, to go down the road of the knowledge-based economy. And it’s good news for France, which has demonstrated its desire to attract and welcome high value-added activities, particularly with its tax credit on research and development, one of the most advantageous in the world”.
Speaking at an event in Paris, Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, said, “To compete in a global, innovation-driven economy, we need to draw on the world’s smartest, most creative minds. Increasingly, we are finding the talent we need here in Europe. To tap into that talent, we’ve invested in research and development across the region and today, Europe is second only to the United States in the number of engineers and researchers we have working on creating innovative products and services."
In France, the Invest in France Agency and the Ile-de-France economic development agency helped and supported Microsoft with its project. "Microsoft’s decision to create an important R&D centre dedicated to search in Europe, with a strong presence in France, is a first which we salute,” said Christine Lagarde, the French Minister of Finance, “This is good news for the European Union, which decided long ago, with the Lisbon strategy, to go down the road of the knowledge-based economy. And it’s good news for France, which has demonstrated its desire to attract and welcome high value-added activities, particularly with its tax credit on research and development, one of the most advantageous in the world”.
