Lenovo's European boss lavishes praise on Microsoft Surface tablet

Company does about-face on possible competition from Redmond

A Lenovo executive has claimed the release of Microsoft's Surface tablet will provide a shot in the arm for the Windows 8 tablet market.

Gianfrano Lanci, head of Lenovo Europe, Middle East and Africa division told attendees at the International Franchise Association's consumer electronics show that he's glad Microsoft is launching a tablet. His words fly in the face of growing disquiet from some Microsoft's partners who want the software titan to stay out of hardware.

Lanci says Surface is a sign of Microsoft's confidence in the Windows 8 tablet market.

"I think it's very welcoming if other people, including Microsoft, [make] Windows 8 tablets. I think it's also proof that they really believe that with Windows 8 they can become a serious player in the tablet arena," Lanci said at the Berlin conference.

"And to have Microsoft doing that, I think it's a good advertisement for us and other OEMs. [Lenovo is] not negative at all about this move."

Lanci's words go against what Lenovo's chief executive said earlier this month. Yang Yuanqing said earlier this month that he didn't like the idea of Microsoft providing hardware.

Gartner analyst Carolina Milanesi backed Lanci's assessment of the Surface tablet.

The Gartner research vice president told V3 that Microsoft entering the hardware arena is a good thing for the soon-to-emerge Windows 8 tablet market.

"I think that is a strong statement from Microsoft that they believe in the tablet market and in Windows 8, and that they want to continue to have a strong presence in the next phase of computing," said Milanesi.

"It is also a message to the OEMs about the kind of hardware they want to see on the market."

Milanesi sees Surface as a way for Microsoft to define the market and spread the Windows 8 tablet brand. She feels the tablet will only help to define the Windows 8 marketplace.

"Yes, it is one more product [for] the partners competing against [Surface] but considering the limited channel I do not think that is a big problem," Milanesi added.

"In reality, if the product is well received then the marketing push around it is going to benefit the ecosystem as a whole."

The Surface tablet is expected to be released on 26 October and Lenovo's Windows 8 Thinkpad tablet 2 is expected to get a release around the same time.