Windows 10 release date: new Microsoft operating system will be free, even for pirates

Company had previously said free update would be out ‘later this year’

Terry Myerson silhouetted against the backdrop at the Windows 10 launch event (Microsoft)

Windows 10 will be released as a free download this summer, in 190 countries and 111 languages.

The company said at launch that the update would be release later this year, but it confirmed today that it would be coming in the coming months.

The new release will bring a host of new features, including a streamlined look and the ability to load it on devices of all kinds, including holograms. It will also get rid of some old ones, including killing off Internet Explorer.

The update will be free to all Windows 7, Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone 8.1 users for its first year, as the company announced when it launched the operating system in January.

To make that upgrade process easier, some PC companies have already committed to helping their customers get on the new operating system. Lenovo, for instance, will offer free upgrade services at 2,500 service centres in China so that customers will be able to be guided through the upgrades.

Offering the upgrade for free is thought to be partly a response to the high amount of piracy of previous Windows updates in China. As such, the company will even offer the upgrades to people who are using copies of the software that aren't genuine because they've been downloaded or shared.