Microsoft to build $280m R&D center in Beijing

Software giant Microsoft yesterday said it will invest $280 million to build a research and development center in Beijing and significantly expand its research team in the country.

The new R&D campus, set to accommodate 5,000 employees, will become Microsoft's largest research center outside the United States when it is completed in 2010, said Zhang Yaqin, the company's China chairman.

"Through investments such as this, we are building on our capabilities as one of Microsoft's key global R&D centers," said Zhang.