Microsoft to Build Data Centers with $1 Bln in Greece

Microsoft based in Redmond announced on Monday plans to build data centers in Athens, with $ 1 billion, following nine months of confidential negotiations for an agreement.

According to Microsoft President Brad Smith, this significant investment is a reflection of confidence in the economy, people, and government Greek.

On other hand, Microsoft officials explained that the timetable for the development of the data center in Greece was still being worked out. In addition, Greece would comply with Microsoft's pledge to run all its data centers worldwide on renewable energy sources by 2025.

Microsoft President Brad Smith and Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis

As for the Greek government, it wants to shift the balance of the Greek economy and developing the energy, tech, and defense sectors, hoping to lure back tens of thousands of graduates who left during the financial crisis.

Noteworthy, Greece emerged from a years-long financial crisis but its economy has been hard hit by the pandemic, suffering a 15.2% drop in output on the year in the second quarter. Unemployment in June climbed to 18.3% from 16.4% at the start of the year.

Greece's economy is expected to contract 8.2% this year due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, and grow by up to 7.5% next year, According to budget figures submitted to parliament on Monday,

Later, Microsoft released a service for cloud games Xbox, at a price of one dollar for the first month for new users, in a promotional campaign to attract a class of players as competition intensifies with the Japanese company Sony.

According to Gilherme Fernandez, an analyst at game analysis firm Newzoo, explained that the cloud gaming revenues are expected to grow to $ 4.8 billion by 2023, compared to about $ 600 million for the current year.

On other hand, the analysts expect that the demand for immersive gaming experiences, through improved sound and graphics, will increase the sales of gaming platforms, as Microsoft and Sony are expected to launch the next generation of gaming platforms within the next few months.