Press Releases

Microsoft Canada and The Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto Unveil Centre for CRM Excellence

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 14:08:00 GMT

First of its kind, the merging of technical and academic expertise creates global hub for thought leadership and research; executive program to start in November 2010

TORONTO, ON, July 5, 2010 - Microsoft Canada Inc. and The University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management today announced the creation of the Rotman Executive Programs Centre for CRM Excellence (CRM Centre), a joint initiative housed within Rotman Executive Programs with a focus on research, building intellectual capital, and developing unique, powerful and interactive CRM educational programs.

Set to launch with an Executive Program in November 2010, the CRM Centre is unique in that it will leverage the expertise of both organizations to build a globally recognized hub for CRM thought leadership and research. The first offering of the Centre will be a three-day program designed for executives with responsibility for CRM initiatives, with a special emphasis on Social CRM. The program will help participants build organizations that satisfy the needs of their customers.

Quotes

"There's never been a better time to launch this kind of program, and we're proud to work with Microsoft Canada to set a new bar for CRM leadership and best practices," says Dilip Soman, who holds the Corus Chair in Communication Strategy and is a professor of marketing at the Rotman School of Management."Rotman graduates are renowned for helping organizations maximize their value. The new Centre of Excellence will help executives sharpen their CRM skills and help companies transform their customer strategies."

"The practice of CRM is evolving as businesses increasingly tap into the power of social networks and real-time feedback. The days of simply providing better service are gone - today CRM is social, driven by personal interactions and by customers who expect control over their engagement with companies. Programs like this will help companies learn to be more responsive, transparent, and personal in their dealings with customers" says Frank Falcone, CRM Lead, Microsoft Canada.

"Bringing together the world's software makers with one of Canada's leading business schools makes this program unique in North America. CRM is evolving, and the launch of this program demonstrates that it has become critical to business success," says Michael Fauscette, Group Vice President, Software Business Solutions, IDC.

"The creation of the University of Toronto CRM Centre of Excellence isn't just important, it's seminal. As recognition for this business strategy and methodology grows, a neutral body that supports the evolution of Social CRM is important," says Paul Greenberg, author, CRM at the Speed of Light and President, The 56 Group LLC. "Thanks to the University of Toronto, the new ideas, approaches, practices and refinements of this mission-critical business science have an indisputable home."

CRM Executive Program

The CRM Centre will be grounded in the same unwavering academic rigour as other Executive Programs, and focused on developing a community of business leaders. Professor Dilip Soman is the Centre's Academic Director and Frank Falcone will be Executive Program Director.

Resources

Video

Watch Dilip Soman, Frank Falcone and Rotman Executive Programs Managing Director Michele Milan talk about the formation of the new Centre and important trends occurring in the CRM industry

About Rotman

The Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto is redesigning business education for the 21st century with a curriculum based on Integrative Thinking. Located in the world's most diverse city, the Rotman School fosters a new way to think that enables the design of creative business solutions. For more information, visit http://www.rotman.utoronto.ca.

About Microsoft Canada

Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Inc. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT") the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has nine regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca.

For more information, please contact:

Allison Colalillo, on behalf of Microsoft Canada

416-368-8348, acolalillo@highroad.com

Microsoft Office 2010 Now Available For Consumers Across Canada

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 12:47:00 GMT

Millions of beta users help Microsoft deliver the best experience for getting things done across the PC, phone and browser.

MISSISSAUGA, ON - June 15, 2010 - Today, Microsoft Corp. announced the worldwide availability of Microsoft Office 2010, Visio® 2010 and Project 2010. Consumers can now purchase Office 2010 at retail stores across Canada, such as Future Shop, Best Buy, Staples; through online retailers, including Amazon.ca; and direct from Microsoft at Office.com/ca.

Office 2010 can also be purchased with the most popular desktops and laptops from leading PC makers including Acer Inc., Asus, Dell Inc., HP, Lenovo, Samsung and Sony Corp. In the next year, more than 100 million PCs will ship with Office 2010 preloaded, which can easily be activated with the purchase of any one of the three versions of Office 2010, including Office Home and Student 2010, Office Home and Business 2010, or Office Professional 2010.

"Working with major retail partners and PC makers, we've made dramatic changes in the way we deliver Office 2010 to give consumers more buying choice, making it easier than ever to unlock the power of Office on new and existing PCs," said Jason Brommet, Group Marketing Manager, Information Worker, Microsoft Canada. "For the first time, people can purchase a Product Key Card at retail to activate Office 2010 preloaded on new PCs. For those who want to download Office 2010 direct from Office.com for an existing PC, the new Click-to-Run technology will have them up and running in a matter of minutes."

"Today is an exciting day for Future Shop. We're all about offering cutting-edge technology to our customers, and the buzz around Office 2010 in our online forums and in our stores has been growing. We're excited to offer Office 2010 and help Canadians express their creativity and stay more productive and connected than ever," says Elliott Chun, Marketing and Communications Manager, Future Shop.

From a survey of Office 2010 beta users, Microsoft found 75 percent say they plan to buy Office 2010 within six months. The Office 2010 beta program had over nine million downloads, more than six times the size of the Office 2007 beta - indicating strong consumer interest in Office 2010.

Productivity solutions across the PC, phone and browser

Throughout its development cycle, customer feedback has been critical to the improvements found in Office 2010. Based on this valuable input, Microsoft has made considerable enhancements to help users do the following:

--Create great looking documents and presentations. Express creativity in PowerPoint 2010 presentations with new video and photo editing features. Add extensive text effects and table formatting options in Word 2010. Reveal important trends in data with Sparklines in Excel 2010. OneNote 2010 makes everything you need simple to find, organize and share.

--Connect and work together more simply. Advanced e-mail management and calendaring capabilities in Outlook 2010, and the new Outlook Social Connector help people stay productive and in touch with personal and business networks. Work with others more efficiently using new co-authoring in Word 2010, PowerPoint 2010 and OneNote 2010. Deliver presentations over the Web with new PowerPoint Broadcast Slideshow.

--Get things done from anywhere. With Office 2010 and the Office Web Apps - the online companions to Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote, people have the freedom to view, edit, and share Office 2010 documents in the cloud with Windows Live SkyDrive. The Office Web Apps preserve the look and feel of Office documents, so valuable content and formatting are not compromised while moving between the PC, phone and browser.*

Office Mobile 2010 is also available from Windows® Phone Marketplace for all Windows Mobile 6.5 phones. People using Office Mobile 2010 can perform lightweight editing of Office documents and take notes on the go, or work on Office documents stored on their phone or attached to an e-mail.

For more information, press only:

For more information, news and perspectives, please visit the Microsoft Canada News Centre at http://news.microsoft.ca, or contact:

Tania DiVito, on behalf of Microsoft Canada

tdivito@highroad.com, 416-644-2262

Allison Colalillo, on behalf of Microsoft Canada

acolalillo@highroad.com, 416-644-2227

About Microsoft Canada

Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Inc., is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT") the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has nine regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca

^*An appropriate device, Internet connection and supported browser are required. Some mobile functionality requires Office Mobile 2010, which is not included in Office 2010 applications, suites or Web Apps. There are some differences between the features of the Office Web Apps, Office Mobile 2010 and the Office 2010 applications.

Kinect for Xbox 360 Sets the Future in Motion — No Controller Required

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 02:36:00 GMT

Microsoft reveals new ways to play that are fun and easy for everyone.

LOS ANGELES - June 14, 2010 - Get ready to Kinect to fun entertainment for everyone. Microsoft Corp. today capped off a two-day world premiere, complete with celebrities, stunning physical dexterity, and news from a galaxy far, far away, to reveal experiences that will transform living rooms in North America, beginning Nov. 4. Kinect will roll out to the rest of the world thereafter.

Opening with a magical Cirque du Soleil performance on Sunday night attended by Hollywood's freshest faces, Microsoft gave the transformation of home entertainment a name: Kinect for Xbox 360. Then, kicking off the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), today Xbox 360 invited the world to dance, hurdle, soar and make furry friends for life - all through the magic of Kinect - no controller required.

"With 'Kinectimals' and 'Kinect Sports,' 'Your Shape: Fitness Evolved' and 'Dance Central,' your living room will become a zoo, a stadium, a fitness room or a dance club. You will be in the centre of your entertainment, using the best controller ever made - you," said Kudo Tsunoda, creative director for Microsoft Game Studios.

Microsoft and LucasArts also announced that they will bring Star Wars® to Kinect in 2011. And, sprinkling a little fairy dust on Xbox 360, Disney will bring its magic to Kinect as well.

"Xbox LIVE is about making it simple to find the entertainment you want, with the friends you care about, wherever you are. Kinect is about making that experience more natural and engaging than ever before," said Marc Whitten, corporate vice president of Xbox LIVE at Microsoft. "Once you experience your movies and games with Xbox LIVE and Kinect, you won't ever want to go back."

Using Kinect is as simple as stepping in front of the sensor. It recognizes you, responds to your gestures, listens to your voice, and, best of all, it works with every Xbox 360.1

A Little Less Conversation, a Little More Action

Declaring "the time for talk is over," Tsunoda unveiled eight hurdling, running, dancing, driving and soaring Kinect games:

--"Kinect Adventures" (Microsoft Game Studios). Float in outer space. Experience the thrill of roaring rapids. Tackle mountaintop obstacle courses. And dive into the deep to explore a leaky underwater observatory - all from your living room. With "Kinect Adventures," you are the controller as you jump, dodge and kick your way through exciting adventures set in a variety of exotic locations.

--"Kinectimals" (Frontier Studio, Microsoft Game Studios). A wide-eyed Bengal Tiger cub cocks its head to the side and playfully peers at you. Memories of your first trip to the zoo come rushing back. "Kinectimals" invites children, their parents and animal lovers of all ages to build lasting friendships with some of the world's most exotic creatures. Just like real pets, your "Kinectimals" will come running when they hear your voice, respond to commands like "jump," "roll-over" and "play dead," and purr with joy when you scratch them behind the ears.

--"Kinect Joy Ride" (Big Park, Microsoft Game Studios). 3 ... 2 ... 1 ... Go! "Kinect Joy Ride," the first controller-free racing game, will take you and your friends on the ride of your lives - no drivers license required. "Kinect Joy Ride" reinvents driving and Kart racing by adding massive jumps and full body stunts to the classic Kart racing action. With a host of cool features and game modes you can take off for the ride of your life by yourself, pick up a co-pilot or team up with your friends and family to take on the world.

--"Kinect Sports" (Rare, Microsoft Game Studios). Turn your living room into a world-class stadium, bowling alley, soccer pitch or arena. With "Kinect Sports" you're not only the star player, you are the controller - through the magic of Kinect for Xbox 360. See a ball? Kick it. Spike it. Even give it a little top spin. "Kinect Sports" features soccer, beach volleyball, bowling, table tennis, boxing and multiple track and field events.

--"Dance Central" (MTV Games). "Dance Central"^TM is the first full-body, controller-free dance video game with fun choreography for beginners and experts. Featuring full-body tracking, the magic of Kinect for Xbox 360 allows you to experience real dance with your friends and family. Whether you're rehearsing in Break It Down! or owning the stage in Perform It, you'll be introduced to more than 600 moves in the game and more than 90 dance routines all created by professional choreographers. The game features tracks from an amazing mix of pop, hip-hop and R&B artists including Lady Gaga, No Doubt, M.I.A., Bell Biv Devoe, and more. Take your moves to the next level while connecting with the music you love!

--"Your Shape: Fitness Evolved" (Ubisoft). Get the most out of Kinect with "Your Shape: Fitness Evolved." Unlike other games, the proprietary Player Projection technology of "Your Shape: Fitness Evolved" puts your body into the game for the ultimate experience. You'll physically interact with virtual environments in ways you've never seen before, and you'll be captivated by unique and exciting visual effects that respond to your movement and impact. Burn calories your way - choose a personal trainer to help you meet your specific fitness goals, take a yoga or martial arts class, or play fun family-friendly minigames. As you exercise, you'll receive specific feedback on your every move, thanks to the game's real-time precise tracking system. You won't notice how hard you're working until you see the results!

--Also coming to Kinect this holiday are titles representing the top names in the gaming industry including interactive fitness product "EA SPORTS Active^TM 2" (EA SPORTS), "DECA SPORTS FREEDOM" (Hudson Entertainment), "Dance Masters" (Konami), "Adrenalin Misfits" (Konami), "Zumba Fitness"® (Majesco), "Sonic Free Riders"^TM (SEGA), "The Biggest Loser: Ultimate Workout" (THQ), "Motion Sports" (Ubisoft), and "Game Party^TM: In Motion" (Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment). Additional exciting Kinect game experiences will be revealed by publishing partners in the near future.

Extraordinary Entertainment

Offering so much more than just games, Kinect for Xbox 360 takes your entertainment to the next level. Beginning this holiday, the Kinect Hub puts your favourite movies and TV programs all in one place - completely controller-free.

Jump right into a movie in instant-on HD in 1080p by simply saying "Xbox, play." Kinect also creates new ways for friends and family to have fun together.

With Video Kinect2, share a smile with distant friends and family as you open a window into living rooms around the world. Providing entertainment for everyone, with the power of Kinect, the Xbox LIVE experience is more intuitive, social and interactive than ever before.

For more information, press only:

Elisa Wegenast for Xbox Canada

ewegenast@highroad.com

416-644-2261

About Xbox 360

Xbox 360 is a premier home entertainment and video game system. This November, with the addition of Kinect, Xbox 360 will forever transform social gaming and entertainment with a whole new way to play - no controller required. Xbox 360 is also home to the best and broadest games as well as the largest on-demand library of music, standard- and high-definition movies, TV shows and digital games, all in one place. The entertainment center of the living room, Xbox 360 blends unbeatable content with the leading social network of 25 million Xbox LIVE members to create a limitless entertainment experience that can be shared at home or across the globe. More information about Xbox 360 can be found online at http://www.xbox.ca.

About Microsoft Canada

Microsoft Continues to Fuel Vibrant App Ecosystem in Vancouver

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:15:00 GMT

Local Developer Creates Award Winning Application that Leverages Vancouver Open Data

Vancouver, BC - June 2, 2010 - Microsoft Canada continues to help foster Vancouver's vibrant developer community with news today that it is working with local government experts and graduate students at the Centre for Digital Media, Great Northern Way Campus to make government data more accessible and useful for citizens.

Leveraging Vancouver City's Open Data Catalogue and help from the VanMaps team, and with guidance from open government activist David Eaves, grad students at Great Northern Way Campus created TaxiCity, a entertaining game where players can navigate the city in a yellow cab. Awareness of the application, which showcases the power of Silverlight and the Bing Maps API, has moved beyond Vancouver to the rest of Canada. Last week in Montreal, TaxiCity took home second prize at the FTW! Coding competition during Make Web, Not War 2010.

TaxiCity is just one example of how Microsoft continues to help fuel a vibrant application ecosystem around Open Data Catalogues across Canada.

Impact of Microsoft's Cross Country Gov 2.0 and Open Source Initiatives:

--Since the launch of Vancouver's Open Data Catalogue, local programmers have been working on applications to make the data useful for the citizens of Vancouver. The release of the Open Data Application Framework open source project and the development of such applications as VanGuide Vancouver Parking, MapWay and FreeFinders are the result of a Microsoft sponsored competition to encourage the development of open government apps.

--Edmonton was the first North American city to use the Open Government Data Initiative (OGDI) cloud-based solution from Microsoft for its Open Data Catalogue. The catalogue was implemented at minimal cost to the City using open source components and Microsoft's newest cloud operating system, Windows Azure^TM. Using open standards and application interfaces (API), local developers and municipal IT staff can easily retrieve data for use in innovative online applications that can help improve citizen services, enhance collaboration between public and private organizations and increase City transparency.

--Microsoft's Gov 2.0 efforts also include sponsorship of GovCamp Canada a gathering of local citizens, public sector employees, service delivery leaders and policy people with an interest in having a conversation on engaging citizens, empowering business and increasing internal efficiencies through transformational government activities.

--Microsoft continues to contribute and drive innovation through its Open Source initiatives such as Microsoft's CodePlex.com, Port25 and Open Source Technology Center (OTC). A deep engagement with local Open Source and application communities is also maintained through a series of events including WordCamp, DemoCamp and most recently ConFoo conference. Microsoft's open source efforts also include Web Application Gallery, PHP on Windows and the FTW! Coding Competition at Make Web, Not War.

Supporting Quotes:

Gregor Robertson, Mayor, City of Vancouver

"In Vancouver we're big supporters of Open Government initiatives. It's a great way to foster economic growth and an opportunity to rethink how government operates. Canadian IT companies and cities can and should be empowering citizens to use data to improve our decision making and everyday lives. It's exciting to see students from Great Northern Way Campus using the city's data in new and creative ways."

Dashan Yue, Grad Student at Great Northern Way Campus and Co-Creator of TaxiCity

"When the City of Vancouver released a new version of its Open Data Catalogue it was a natural next step for us to use the street center-lines, block outlines, building traces and park geometry available for TaxiCity. Our program combines different Open Data sets with Silverlight and Bing which helped to drastically lower development time while giving us the mapping data we needed to build a visually appealing, dynamic gaming environment."

David Eaves, Public Policy Entrepreneur and Open Government Activist

"It's great to see Microsoft actively fostering application development using Open Data catalogues on a variety of application platforms. By doing this work they help demonstrate that open data not only helps governments meet their transparency goals but that it can help promote citizen engagement and economic development."

Nik Garkusha, Open Source Strategy Manager, Microsoft Canada Inc.

"Applications like TaxiCity are great examples of the power of open data on the Microsoft-based platform, enabled by open source to make information available for all citizens. By helping Canadian cities transform how they deliver services, Microsoft's continued focus is on interoperability and helping build a vibrant open data application ecosystem."

Supporting Resources:

--TaxiCity: www.taxicity.ca

--Open Data Application Framework: http://odaf.codeplex.com/

--City of Vancouver's Open Data Catalogue: http://data.vancouver.ca/

--Bing Maps API: http://www.microsoft.com/maps/developers/

--Silverlight: http://www.silverlight.net/

--VanGuide: http://vanguide.cloudapp.net/

Downloadable Images

--StreetSide screen capture

--SplashScreen screen capture

--MapScreen screen capture

--InGame screen capture

--Team_ManPower

Tags/Keywords:

Microsoft, Open Data, TaxiCity, Nik Garkusha, Open Source, Open Gov, OGDI, Windows Azure, BING

About Microsoft Canada
Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Inc. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT") the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has nine regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca.

Press inquiries only:

Microsoft Canada:

Chantelle Bernard, High Road Communications

cbernard@highroad.com; 416.644.2289

TaxiCity:

Dennis Chenard, Great Northern Way Campus

dennis_chenard@gnwc.ca ; 778.370.1001

Microsoft Previews Reinvented Windows Live Hotmail

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Tue, 18 May 2010 15:24:00 GMT

The new Hotmail: the next generation in personal email

REDMOND, Wash. - May 17, 2010 - Microsoft Corp. today previewed the new Windows Live^TM Hotmail® - the next generation of personal email - designed with smart tools that help people manage the clutter in their inboxes, save time on the most common tasks they do with email, take the headache out of sharing large attachments like photos, and view and edit Microsoft Office documents right in the Hotmail inbox using just a browser.

Today's inboxes are overflowing with mail that most people consider junk. Even if it is mail that's legitimate, it's still not easy for customers to keep their inbox clean and organized. To help, the new Hotmail delivers the first and only virtual broom, enabling customers to easily sweep unwanted mail out of the inbox. It also helps cut through clutter with intelligent filters that in a single click will filter the entire inbox to show mail just from contacts, just social network alerts, or just mail from the groups users belong to.

With the new Hotmail, customers will also find ways to save time doing the things they most often do with email because Hotmail is giving people the ability to do things that would normally require them to leave their inboxes and jump to other websites. Now customers will be able to see rich previews of photos and videos from popular sites like Flickr and YouTube and see the status of tracked packages in real time, inside their emails. They'll also be able to accept invitations to connect with someone on a social or professional networking site like LinkedIn - all from the convenience of their inboxes.

"With over 360 million active Hotmail accounts worldwide, Microsoft has spent a lot of time listening to customer feedback and thoughtfully designing solutions to meet their needs," stated Owen Sagness, Vice President, Consumer and Online, Microsoft Canada Inc. "Whether it's organizing events, managing commercial transactions, searching for jobs, sharing photos, or communicating with friends and family, the new Hotmail will help increase personal productivity."

One of the biggest changes to Hotmail is the increased ability to manage and share personal photos and documents. Today, people are sharing over 1.5 billion photos and 350 million Microsoft Office documents per month in Hotmail. Still, the "attachment size problem" remains, regardless of which mail service people use. The new Hotmail lets customers send up 10 GB of attachments in a single message, erasing worries of attachment size limits. Send up to 200 attachments - each up to 50 MB in size - in a single message.

With the new version of Hotmail customers are able to view and edit Office documents right in inbox, and all you need is your browser to do so.

"By making it possible for you to create and edit Office documents right in your inbox, Hotmail makes it easier for you to be productive from virtually anywhere," says Sagness.

New features previewed today include those that help you quickly find important messages and manage the clutter in your inbox so that you can stay organized.

Hotmail highlights: Immediately see if you have new email from friends, social network updates, shipments, appointments and birthday reminders - all in a single glance the moment you log in.
Sweep. With this virtual broom you can quickly 'sweep' all unwanted mail out of your inbox and into folders or the trash. You can tell Hotmail to perform sweeps automatically with the simple check of a box. And you can sweep mail from your Gmail and Yahoo! Mail accounts by adding them to your Hotmail inbox, where you can send and receive mail from other email services.
One click filters. In just a single click you can filter your entire inbox to show you the mail you care about most, whether it's all messages from your contacts or from social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn or mailing groups you belong to. You can also click once to find all messages that contain photos, documents, videos, shipping updates or messages you've flagged.
Advanced search and automated search suggestions. Not only has Hotmail added an advanced search pane, but we've also made advanced search easy with inbox search auto-complete. From the moment you type a single letter into the search box, Hotmail automatically suggests a number of searches so that you can more quickly find the messages you're looking for.
Conversation view. Group your emails by conversation or don't - it's completely up to you. A single click turns conversation view on or off.

Microsoft also showed off work they've done together with a collection of top websites to enable people to do more without having to continually leave their inboxes.

Active views: A lot of messages prompt you to leave your inbox and hop to other websites to complete actions. Hotmail is saving you time by enabling you to complete those actions right within the messages themselves, whether it's viewing videos from YouTube or photos on Flickr, tracking the shipping status of packages in real time, or interacting with services like LinkedIn - all from the convenience of your inbox.

Given that security and privacy protection is at the forefront of everything that Microsoft does, the new Hotmail will provide a number of additional measures to help people keep their accounts safe.

Industry leading spam-fighting. By utilizing Microsoft's SmartScreen spam and malware cloud-based filtering heuristics - technology also used by Microsoft Exchange Server, Forefront^TM, and Internet Explorer to help protect against spam and malicious code - Hotmail has been able to reduce the amount of spam in the average inbox from what was a "low" of 35% of the average Hotmail inbox back in 2006 to just 4% today - a best practice for personal webmail. Hotmail continues to leverage Microsoft's $9.5 Billion R&D investment to innovate new ways to minimize spam and to outpace the bad guys. Some of innovations that the new Hotmail brings with it include time traveling filters, personalized spam filtering, spam tagging, and spammer infrastructure detection.
Trusted senders. With the new Hotmail, we help you to visually identify trusted senders in your inbox, particularly banks and other senders most commonly impersonated in phishing scams, by putting safety logos next to those senders who we recognize as legitimate.
Full-session SSL. In addition to providing SSL encryption of credentials at login for all accounts, the new Hotmail will soon support the option to maintain SSL encryption between you and Microsoft servers during your entire Hotmail session.
Single-use codes. This new security feature is designed to further help protect you by giving you the option to ask Hotmail to SMS to you a one-time temporary password if you'd prefer not to use your regular password when logging into Hotmail on public computers that could potentially harbor key logging malware that could steal your password, such as those sometimes found in internet cafes and airports.

Additional feature investments in the new Hotmail include the following.

Rich mobile browse. With the new Hotmail, the mobile experience is optimized for rich browsers and touch, so that the user experience feels seamless on the latest phones. The inbox supports filters, in-line message previews, HTML messages, offline e-mail viewing, conversation threading, the ability to flag messages, the option to turn header details on or off, and more.
Mobile Calendar. Manage invitations received via Hotmail, set reminders, aggregate multiple calendars, share your calendar with friends and family, and do it all from the calendar built into your phone with ActiveSync or from your phone's web browser.
Exchange ActiveSync. Hotmail supports push email on the Web, PC, and now also on the mobile phone. Using Exchange ActiveSync, available on nearly 300 million phones, you can not only seamlessly synchronize Hotmail between your phone and the Web, but also synchronize your calendar and contacts
Single contact list. The new Hotmail enables you to bring all your online contacts into one convenient place - even those from services like Facebook, LinkedIn and MySpace or other email services like Gmail, Yahoo!, or AOL. Hotmail makes it easy to merge or remove duplicate entries for the same contact.
IM in the inbox. Improved integration of Messenger makes it easier to see who's online and chat with one or more person in the same window with tabbed conversations - all from within the Hotmail inbox.
IM with Facebook friends. IM with all your buddies - not just those on Messenger, but also those on Facebook.
Send and receive mail from other services like Gmail and Yahoo!. Now easier than ever to aggregate your accounts in Hotmail.
Post comments to Facebook and other websites. Do this from the Hotmail home page, a page you can see when you log in or permanently skip if you'd rather just go to your inbox and log in.
Update your status on Facebook and Windows Live Messenger. Also from the Hotmail home page.
Ever growing storage. While this isn't new, we wanted to remind you that Hotmail gives you 5 GB to start with and then automatically adds lots of additional storage each month if you run out. That's why some people today are using well over 20 GB of storage in Hotmail.
More themes. More ways to personalize your inbox than ever.

The new Hotmail will begin to rollout in mid-summer to customers worldwide. Learn more about the preview today by visiting http://www.hotmailpreview.com/ and sign up for Hotmail today at www.hotmail.com.

In Canada, people will soon be able to experience the added benefit of getting the Hotmail address they've always wanted: In addition to the new Hotmail, Microsoft Canada is also announcing the coming availability of Hotmail.ca email addresses. Hotmail.ca addresses will be available to Canadians starting in June - stay tuned for details.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

Elisa Wegenast

High Road Communications

ewegenast@highroad.com

416-644-2261

Meghan Neufeld

High Road Communications

mneufeld@highroad.com

416-644-2278

Microsoft Delivers the Future of Productivity with Office 2010 and SharePoint 2010

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Wed, 12 May 2010 12:10:00 GMT

Edmonton Oilers and Jacox Harley Davidson among Canadian organizations already realizing benefits

MISSISSAUGA, ON - May 12, 2010 - Today, Microsoft Corp. announced the worldwide availability of Microsoft Office 2010 and Microsoft SharePoint® 2010, as well as Microsoft Visio® 2010 and Microsoft Project 2010, for business customers worldwide. Businesses across Canada can now deploy the 2010 suite of products and customers can expect to see significant productivity gains and greater return on their software investments.

The Edmonton Oilers are using SharePoint 2010 to help its scouting staff collaborate in real time. Scouts, who travel across Europe and North America in search of prospective entry draft picks, can now post and browse player files online, read detailed player statistics and respond to comments left by colleagues. "Our goal is to win a Stanley Cup, and that starts with our scouts. As we get deeper into the entry draft process, we rely on their expertise to identify talented players with the potential to become Oilers. SharePoint 2010 is helping to make their lives easier. By helping them make better, faster decisions and instantly share information, we have an opportunity to build an even stronger hockey team," says Sean Draper, Director of Research, Analysts and Software Development, Edmonton Oilers.

As the economy continues to strengthen, 90 per cent of Canadian business leaders believe that the innovative use of IT is critical for their companies, according to recent survey results from The Strategic Counsel. As well, nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) say technology that helps improve communication and collaboration is important to them.

"A new generation is entering the workforce, and they expect the mobile and social networking capabilities they enjoy at home to be available at work," said Antoine Leblond, senior vice-president, Office Productivity Applications Group. "The 2010 suite of products provides workers with one of the best productivity experiences across the PC, phone and browser, making it easy for people to connect and share ideas."

Jacox Harley-Davidson in Mississauga, Ontario, is one of the largest exclusive Harley-Davidson dealerships in Canada. Marshall Horner, the firm's partner and general manager, relies on Microsoft Office to help run the company. "As a small business owner, I don't sell motorcycles, I sell a lifestyle. I depend on spreadsheets to help manage our business and control our financial operations to manage this objective. This includes everything from bikes, parts and service, sales and operating costs. I'm impressed with the new look and feel of Office 2010 and the new features of Excel. I'm excited to see how this technology will help us grow our business," says Horner.

Productivity Solutions Across the PC, Phone and Browser

Office 2010 and related products deliver new capabilities to help people:

--Connect and Collaborate with co-authoring in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and OneNote; advanced e-mail management and calendaring capabilities in Outlook; and the addition of the new Outlook Social Connector, which brings communication history and social network feeds directly into Outlook.

--Work Anywhere with Office Web Applications, the lightweight Web browser versions of Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote. Web Applications preserve the look and feel of a document regardless of device, so content and format stay exactly the same while moving between the PC, phone and browser.

--Help Bring Ideas to Life with video, text and image editing, new broadcast capabilities in PowerPoint, auto-previewing in Word, easy document preparation through the new Microsoft Office Backstage view, and new Sparklines in Excel for precise trend and data visualization.

--Quickly Access Data to Make Real-time Decisions using the business intelligence capabilities in familiar Office applications that transform everyday work data into valuable information.

Developer and Partner Opportunities

SharePoint 2010 delivers the business collaboration platform for the enterprise and Internet, enabling developers and partners to rapidly respond to business needs with custom applications and solutions.

Fast Facts

--8.6 million people are already using Office 2010 and related products

--Office Web applications will now be available to all Office volume licensing customers. Customers will be able to purchase a subscription to Office Web Apps as part of Microsoft Online Services

--A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting, "The Total Economic Impact ^TM Of Implementing Microsoft's Integrated Productivity Platform," May 2010, evaluated the 2010 releases of Office, SharePoint, Exchange and Office Communications Server 2007 R2. Based on the customer interviews, Forrester constructed a TEI framework for a composite organization and found the ROI to be 301% with a payback period of 7.4 months after deployment

Availability

--Available today in 14 languages, over the course of the next few months, Office 2010 and related products will eventually be available in 94 languages.

--Canadian customers who want more information on Office 2010 products can visit www.microsoft.ca/productivity

--The Canadian 2010 launch site is at http://www.the2010event.ca. Microsoft's global launch website is at http://www.the2010event.com.

About Microsoft Canada
Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Inc. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT"), the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Microsoft Canada is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario with MSN.CA offices located in Toronto and eight regional offices across the country. The company supports local communities across Canada by creating innovative technology and partnerships that help people realize their full potential. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca.

For more press only information and resources, visit the Office 2010 newsroom.

©2010 Microsoft Corporation. Microsoft is either a registered trademark or trademark Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Internet Explorer 8 and Kinsa Help Canadians Browse with Confidence

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Mon, 10 May 2010 13:31:00 GMT

Project raises awareness of online safety while generating funds for the Kids Internet Safety Alliance

Mississauga, ON - May 10, 2010 - Today Microsoft Canada Inc., unveiled Browse with Confidence (www.browsewithconfidence.ca), a new online destination designed to promote safe browsing.

"Canadians are among the most connected people around the world," said Eric Gales, President, Microsoft Canada. "We are banking, shopping, connecting and learning online. We want to make sure Canadians are also thinking about the safety of their personal information by helping them browse with confidence."

Browsewithconfidence.ca focuses on educating and empowering people to better protect themselves using the advanced security features in Internet Explorer® 8. Visitors can help spread the message of online security and help keep children safe online through an integrated Facebook application.

By simply clicking "Join us," and choosing to share the Browse with confidence message with their Facebook friends, Internet Explorer 8 will make a donation to Kinsa, the Kid's Internet Safety Alliance. As a Canadian charity dedicated to protecting children online, Kinsa is a natural fit for the Browse with confidence campaign.

"No one is more committed to online safety than Microsoft," said Paul Gillespie, President and CEO of Kinsa. "Browse with confidence is another great example of our ongoing partnership with Microsoft. Proceeds from the campaign will help Kinsa train a new group of law enforcement officers to better police the Internet and ensure the safety of children at home and abroad."

About Internet Explorer 8

A recent report from NSS Labs Inc., the world's leading independent information security research and testing organization, ranked Internet Explorer 8 as the No. 1 browser in malware protection, beating the nearest competitor by 30 per cent. Internet Explorer 8 has blocked over 560 Million malware site impressions and more than 125 million phishing attempts so far.

About Kids Internet Safety Alliance

Kinsa - the Kids' Internet Safety Alliance - works with Canadian law enforcement and other partners to deliver training for police in developing nations to help them rescue child victims of abuse whose images are shared on the Internet.

About Microsoft Canada

For more information - press contact:

Sheryl Davey, High Road Communications on behalf of Microsoft Canada
sdavey@highroad.com phone: 416 644 2274

Lesley Sturla, High Road Communications
lsturla@highroad.com phone: 613 688 1185

MSN.ca Officially the Top Portal Home Page in Canada

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 13:42:00 GMT

Toronto – April 21, 2010 - Microsoft Canada Co. today announced that MSN.ca is Canada’s number one portal home page in the country. In just six months, after ending its collaboration with Bell Sympatico, the MSN Canada Home Page reached 12,813,000 unique visitors and tops the list when it comes to total time spent on a portal (comScore February 2010)*.

The number of unique visitors to MSN.ca demonstrates its popularity amongst the Canadian population. Canadians are more highly engaged online than any other nationality (Context Matters II)**. In fact, Canada outpaces the world in online hours, online searches, and average usage days. With seven out of ten Canadians online – a higher ratio than in the U.S. -- now more than ever, marketers gain a return on investment from digital advertising.

“We couldn’t be happier about the portal’s performance, particularly since advertisers are already delivering strong ROI with how MSN.ca targets highly engaged consumers in both English and French,” said Marijke Waddell, Vice President of Microsoft Advertising. “With more than half of the online Canadian population engaging with MSN.ca, our advertisers are leveraging creative ways to deliver a value exchange with this vast audience and their brands, including ways of effective storytelling across MSN.ca, Bing.ca, Windows Live, Xbox Live and mobile.”

From breaking news to the latest celebrity gossip, over half the time Canadians go online for communication and entertainment.** As one of Canada’s premium online destination for news and entertainment, MSN.ca provides access to a new MSN music store, HD video, exclusive columnists, local and regional news, entertainment, MSN guides, blogs, reviews, photo galleries, and more. Additionally, the portal offers a wide variety of channels with media outlets including MSNBC, BBC, Delish, CBC / Radio-Canada, Chatelaine, and Protégez-vous, to name a few. Brand marketers benefit from the exclusive opportunities and digital advertising available on these unique properties.

MSN.ca is powered by Microsoft Advertising, a digital platform that connects marketers with ideal target audiences and the right advertising technology – across the PC, mobile phones, in-game and on the Web.

For more information regarding advertising on MSN.ca, please call toll-free ENGLISH: 1-877-882-9482 FRENCH: 1-877-882-9484, and visit advertising.microsoft.ca or msn.ca.

About Microsoft Canada Co.

Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Co. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT") the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has 10 regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit news.microsoft.ca.

About Microsoft Advertising

Microsoft Advertising provides advertisers and publishers with media, tools and services to drive deep and profitable engagement with their audiences. This includes a media network that reaches hundreds of millions of consumers around the world; global technology platforms and tools that enable easy planning and management of campaigns and content; and services that help untangle the complexities of digital media to get more value from marketing and content investments. Microsoft Advertising makes buying and selling media simple, smart and cost-effective across media and devices in the Microsoft network of properties and beyond. Visit http://advertising.microsoft.ca for more information.

*comScore Media Metrix Canada in the Custom-build category by MSN, which includes the following entities: MSN Canada Homepage, Yahoo! Canada Homepages, iGoogle, and AOL Canada Homepages, in February 2010.

** Context Matters II, a recent study conducted by OTX Research for Microsoft Canada, 2009

Microsoft Launches SQL Server 2008 R2 to Help Companies Enhance the Decision-making Process

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 14:34:00 GMT

Survey reveals 73 per cent of Canadian firms agree business intelligence (BI) tools can help deliver stronger business insight

MISSISSAUGA, ON - April 21, 2010 - Microsoft Corp. today announced the release to manufacturing of Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 R2, one of the industry's most complete information platform for managing, accessing and delivering information to help businesses make better decisions. In Canada, the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) South Central Ontario is leveraging the advanced business intelligence (BI) capabilities of the Microsoft SQL Server-based platform to better assess risk and accurately determine rates, policy renewals and special offers to their clients.

A recent survey conducted by The Strategic Council and sponsored by Microsoft reveals 73 per cent of Canadian business decision makers agree that empowering employees with the right tools to analyze business information can have a positive impact on the bottom line. In contrast, only 32 per cent of Canadian businesses, the survey shows, are currently using BI software to help turn business data into insight that can help fuel growth. According to the survey, the top barrier to deploying BI is cost.

"Today's release of Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 helps bring BI to the masses in a cost effective way. In today's business environment, having the right information at your fingertips can give companies the edge needed to stay one step ahead of the competition," said Daniel Shapiro, senior product manager, Server & Tools Business Group, Microsoft Canada. "With enterprise class scalability and IT efficiency, SQL Server remains a value leader in the industry, offering rich, out-of-the-box, feature sets to customers - allowing any sized company to reap the benefits of BI."

Managed Self-Service Business Intelligence for Reporting and Analysis

With SQL Server 2008 R2, introduces powerful new managed self-service BI capabilities, bridging the gap between IT professionals and end users by leveraging familiar tools such as Microsoft Excel® 2010 and Microsoft SharePoint® Server 2010. With the new BI technology named PowerPivot, end users can bring data from virtually anywhere and manipulate large datasets with ease while still enabling IT to monitor and manage user-generated BI solutions.

And Canadian businesses are taking note. CAA South Central Ontario is looking forward to incorporating SQL Server 2008 R2 in their current BI solution based on SQL Server 2008.

"Insurance is all about calculating risk and pricing policies accordingly. As a relatively small organization, we have to be innovative to thrive within a competitive industry," says Jay Woo, COO, CAA South Central Ontario. "Our BI platform leverages SQL Server and gives our business a competitive edge by providing us with greater insight to better price our policies. We're now using BI to help reduce risk and ultimately make a more positive impact to our bottom line."

Enterprise-Class Scalability and Greater Visibility

With this release, Microsoft continues to focus on critical datacenter needs, enabling businesses to create a highly available infrastructure that is more secure and easier to manage. Recent benchmarks show that SQL Server 2008 R2 has raised the bar in performance on industry-standard hardware. With the introduction of SQL Server 2008 R2 Datacenter edition, in combination with Windows Server 2008 R2, customers can now run databases on systems with up to 256 logical processors, and move to a virtualized datacenter with Hyper-V and Live Migration support. These two releases will help customers move to a private cloud infrastructure that is highly available, consolidated and virtualized and that scales on demand.

Additional key enhancements in this release include two new components of Microsoft's information platform: SQL Server 2008 R2 Master Data Services, which helps customers drive better data consistency across heterogeneous systems, and SQL Server 2008 R2 StreamInsight, which supports high-scale complex event-stream processing.

With the upcoming availability of SQL Server 2008 R2 Parallel Data Warehouse, customers will be able to scale-out their data warehouses from tens to hundreds of terabytes. SQL Server 2008 R2 Parallel Data Warehouse will be offered as an appliance in several configurations through select hardware providers.

Platform Integration Spanning the Datacenter to the Cloud

SQL Server 2008 R2 also represents a further commitment from Microsoft to the cloud. The power of SQL Server is extending to the cloud through Microsoft SQL Azure, which provides a consistent programming model, common capabilities and tools while offering new business opportunities, high availability, self-management and massive scale through distributed cloud data services. Microsoft's recent preview release of the service code-named "Dallas" enables customers to have access to rich new datasets from companies such as Pitney Bowes Inc., NASA and the Associated Press Online. With the capabilities in PowerPivot for Excel, combining private and public datasets for deeper analysis and business insight is much easier. SQL Server 2008 R2 delivers a complete approach to managing, accessing and delivering information across the organization. SQL Server 2008 R2 will be available to customers in early May through Microsoft's distribution and partner channels..

About Microsoft Canada

Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Co. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT") the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has nine regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca.

For more information, please contact:

Isabella Mise

416-644-2293

imise@highroad.com

Microsoft Canada noted one of Canada’s Top 10 Workplaces

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 21:39:00 GMT

Best Workplaces 2010 survey cements Microsoft's worldwide champion status

Mississauga, ON - April 13, 2010 - Microsoft is one of the Top 10 places to work in Canada, according to the Great Places to Work institute (GPTW). Microsoft Canada was also recognized by GPTW as a cultural champion.

A Cultural Champion is described by the GPTW Institute as "[a company with]... a strong corporate culture that is recognizable across the world in terms of a common value system and an explicit belief that people are the key to business success." Microsoft has been recognized on 24 of the 34 worldwide rankings done annually by GPTW.

"We are honoured to be recognized for what we have always known about our company -- that it's a great place to work," said Eric Gales, President, Microsoft Canada. "Microsoft Canada employs brilliant and talented people from coast-to-coast and it's thanks to them that our company is honoured like this."

The "Best Workplaces in Canada" competition process is based on two criteria: two-thirds of the total score comes from a 57-statement survey completed by a random selection of employees, along with their open-ended comments about their organization; the remaining one-third of the score comes from an in-depth review of the organization's culture, including an evaluation of HR policies and procedures. Together, these criteria are judged against the five trust-building dimensions of a great place to work: credibility, respect, fairness, pride and camaraderie.

This year's list received over 200 nominations and approximately 41,000 employees participated in the 2010 "Best Workplaces in Canada" survey.

About the Great Place to Work^® Institute

Great Place to Work® Institute is a global research and management consultancy with expertise on workplace transformation and a presence in 40 countries worldwide. Our mission is to improve society by creating better workplaces. We are best-known for our global Best Workplaces Programme, which we produce in conjunction with prestigious media partners such as the Financial Times and Fortune. With more than 4,000 organizations taking part in over 44 national lists across the globe, the programme is the world's largest of its kind. We believe passionately that any company or organization can become a great place to work. Our mission is to help you do it.

About Microsoft Canada

Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Co. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT") the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has nine regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca.

Intuitive, Easy-To-Use Software Tops Wish Lists as Canadian Businesses Prepare for Growth and Greater IT Investments, Survey Finds

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 14:33:00 GMT

MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO--(April 12, 2010) - Fifty-four per cent of Canadian business executives are planning to boost their IT investments over the next several years and most of them are citing user experience as a critical factor, according to survey results released today by Microsoft Canada Co. When it comes time to evaluate technology, most respondents said intuitive interfaces (80 per cent) and ease of use (78 per cent) are the most important attributes they look for, ahead of security (77 per cent) and improving business processes (71 per cent). The emphasis on user interfaces is not just restricted to software - two-thirds of Canadian businesses also said it's important to have a visually appealing corporate website or intranet.

The survey findings come on the same day Microsoft Corp. announced the release to manufacturing of Visual Studio® 2010 and .NET Framework 4. The company also announced that Silverlight® 4 will release to Web (RTW) later in the week. Together, these technologies help provide developers with a simpler user experience, making it easier to produce quality code and build innovative applications.

"With so many companies revving up their growth plans and turning to technology to achieve their goals, the demand for software will grow, making it a great time to be a Canadian software developer," said Sean Graglia, Senior Product Manager of Developer Tools, Microsoft Canada. "But in order to be successful and meet growing demand for solutions, developers need to work as efficiently and productively as possible. Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4.0 are designed to provide developers with the tools they need to build reliable, easy-to-use applications for desktops, servers, Web browsers and devices - applications today's businesses need to remain competitive."

"Our customers rely on us to help solve their business challenges and unleash their true potential," says Ken Konkel, Team Lead of Core Development, iQmetrix. "The newest version of Visual Studio and .NET Framework builds on its core strengths, helping us streamline communication among developers, help further reduce the risk of downtime and improve how we track and report on software projects. By allowing us to work faster and more efficiently, we expand our business opportunities even further."

Enhancements Focus on Today's Business Needs

Visual Studio 2010 adds enhancements that ensure high-quality code, increase integration and support creativity. New features like IntelliTrace give testers and developers advanced options for testing and debugging while updates to the IDE, multi-monitor support and integration with the latest Windows® and Office technologies simplify everyday tasks. The robust functionality in Visual Studio enables developers to spend more time creating and less time interpreting code.

The .NET Framework 4 adds additional support for industry standards, more language choice, new support for high-performance middle-tier applications including parallel programming, and side-by-side installation with .NET Framework 3.5.

Silverlight 4, which will RTW later this week, offers powerful media and business application capabilities that enable developers to deliver compelling application experiences across the Web, TV, desktop and phone. New features in Silverlight 4 include extended out-of-browser capabilities, enhancements for enterprise application developers and more than 60 customizable pre-written controls to quickly build rich, interactive applications. For a full list of new features, visit: http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/presskits/silverlight.

Developers of Silverlight can now write their applications once and optimize for multiple scenarios to deliver engaging, high-quality experiences through all major browsers on Mac, Windows, and Linux client operating systems as well as a growing range of devices including Windows Phone, Symbian and Moblin. Developers can also take advantage of tools to develop mobile apps including comprehensive tools support for Windows Phone 7 Series and the new Silverlight for Symbian beta.

Product Information and Availability

--To download, purchase or get more information on Visual Studio 2010, visit www.microsoft.ca/visualstudio

--To download or get more information on the .Net Framework 4, visit: http://www.microsoft.com/net/

--To download or get more information on Silverlight 4, visit: http://www.microsoft.com/silverlight

About the survey

Microsoft Canada commissioned the survey from Strategic Counsel, which polled 350 Canadian business and technology decision makers across a range of businesses in February and March 2010.

About Microsoft Canada
Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Inc. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT"), the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Microsoft Canada is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario with MSN.CA offices located in Toronto and eight regional offices across the country. The company supports local communities across Canada by creating innovative technology and partnerships that help people realize their full potential. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca.

For more information, please contact

Press inquiries only:
Chantelle Bernard
416.644.2289
cbernard@highroad.com

Growth is on the Agenda for Two-Thirds of Canadian Small Business Owners, Survey Finds

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 13:19:00 GMT

Steam Whistle Brewing, Cupid's Gourmet Cupcakes among SMBs who showcase power of technology to enable and manage strategic growth

Mississauga, Ontario - March 30, 2010 - Innovation and growth are top of mind among Canadian small businesses, according to the results of an Angus Reid Public Opinion survey released today by Microsoft Canada Inc. Sixty-three per cent of small business decision makers say their companies will experience growth in the next six months, and they are looking to technology to help them better manage current growth while helping them proactively plan for future business success. The survey also found that lack of capital (45%) and qualified staffs (28%) are the top two barriers for business growth.

"Small business owners are the backbone of the Canadian economy and helping small business owners succeed and grow is a priority for Microsoft," said Neil Tanner, Vice-President, Small Business, Midmarket Solutions & Partners, Microsoft Canada. "It's gratifying to see so much optimism, but as a former entrepreneur, I know that growth can become unmanageable unless the right people, tools and processes are in place. Technology helps make it easy for business owners to plan and manage for growth, while empowering them to focus on what they do best, be it sell, brew or bake."

Empowering People at Steam Whistle Brewing

Toronto-based Steam Whistle Brewing, saw itself grow from what Greg Taylor, Co-Founder, calls "three guys and a dream" to one of Canada's largest micro-breweries, with 126 employees. With a 20 per cent year-over-year growth objective, Steam Whistle has even bigger plans for the future.

"Along the way, we learned that growth comes when you have dedicated employees armed with the right technology" said Taylor. "This way, we can ensure we are there for our customers and for each other, we can grow strategically, manage change, and stay true to our culture and our commitment to customers at each stage of our evolution."

Recently, Steam Whistle turned to the Microsoft® Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) to help employees better manage their time, allow them to work together easily and stay connected with customers from any location."It was a smart move. BPOS gives my employees the tools they need at a low monthly cost - I only pay for what I use and can easily add technology when the time is right. That means we spend less time worrying about technology, and more time focused on building our brand."

Cupid's Gourmet Cupcakes Keeps Costs in Check

In 2008, after 15 years as a math teacher, Niki Brinton decided she needed a break. She developed her own cupcake recipes, started baking from her kitchen and began selling through word-of-mouth. Shortly after, her daughter was diagnosed with a nut allergy, and Brinton adjusted her products accordingly. With this new competitive advantage came a surge in demand and a unique market opportunity.

"I used to do everything by hand and write things on paper - it was becoming too time-consuming and extremely inefficient," says Brinton. To help manage growth, Brinton invested in new technology, including Microsoft Windows® 7 and Microsoft Office 2007. Armed with a winning recipe, loyal customer following and the right technology, Brinton launched Cupid's Gourmet Cupcakes' on Valentine's Day, with four full-time and seven part-time employees.

"Today all our costing, conversions, recipes and inventory ordering are paperless. The time efficiency and costs savings that I get from this one piece of technology is invaluable, I'm certain that my doors would close without it," adds Brinton.

Small businesses are a barometer for an economy - and when they are growing and succeeding all Canadians benefit," said Tanner. "In an environment where resources are tight and costs must be contained, small business owners are leading the charge and taking calculated risks and investing in technology to help achieve their growth plans both today and in the future.

Additional National Statistics:

--Today's SMB owners are focussed on maximizing employee effectiveness (89%), eliminating inefficient processes (86%) and reducing wasted time and cutting costs (84%).

--Technology is an important enabler of growth for small businesses, especially in terms of its ability to facilitate communication with customers (79%), manage time (62%) and administer their business (49%)

--Seventy-one per cent of small business owners in Quebec agree that technology helps improve their ability to communicate with customers.

--Over half of small business owners in British Columbia believe that investing in technology can help increase their customer satisfaction and retain their customer base.

*The online poll of 1,004 small business decision makers who work in companies with 99 or fewer employees across Canada was conducted in March 2010 by Angus Reid Public Opinion.

For further information, press only,contact:

Carolyn Hurley, on behalf of Microsoft Canada

(416) 644-2239

churley@highroad.com

©2010 Microsoft Canada Inc. Microsoft is either a registered trademark or trademark Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Microsoft Canada Opens Up to Help Fuel Local App Ecosystem in Vancouver

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 15:40:00 GMT

Vancouver, BC - March 19, 2010 - Microsoft Canada Inc. announced today it is working with local open government experts and Vancouver-based developer Nitobi, to help make government data more easily accessible and useful for citizens. Leveraging the City of Vancouver's Open Data catalogue and Microsoft's Open Government Data Initiative (OGDI) platform, Nitobi has developed VanGuide, a web and mobile based social mapping application that enables citizens to tag, rate and comment on Vancouver landmarks and locations. The codebase for the project has been released as an Open Source framework, to enable the creation of new community driven "mash ups", presenting new opportunities to increase citizen participation and collaboration.

VanGuide is just one example of how Microsoft is working to build a vibrant application ecosystem around Open Data catalogues in Canada and around the world by leveraging the power of technology.

Microsoft's Open Government Efforts Felt Across Canada:

--Since the launch of Vancouver's Open Data Catalogue, local programmers have been working on applications to make the data useful for the citizens of Vancouver. Apps like Vancouver Parking, MapWay and FreeFinders are the result of a Microsoft sponsored competition to encourage the development of open government apps.

--Edmonton is the first North American city to use the Open Government Data Initiative (OGDI) cloud-based solution from Microsoft for its Open Data Catalogue. The catalogue was implemented at minimal cost to the City using open source components and Microsoft's newest cloud operating system, Windows Azure ^TM. Using open standards and application interfaces (API), local developers and municipal IT staff can easily retrieve data for use in innovative online applications that can help improve citizen services, enhance collaboration between public and private organizations and increase City transparency.

--In November 2009, Microsoft Canada held an Open Government Roundtable in Vancouver which brought together various Western government organizations planning open government initiatives. The event facilitated the sharing of best practices amongst the cities of Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, North Vancouver and Nanaimo and served as a discussion hub on how technology can assist with the challenges around deployment. Currently, Microsoft is working with the cities of Nanaimo and Calgary on new Gov 2.0 projects.

Supporting Quotes:

Nik Garkusha, Platform Strategy Manager, Microsoft Canada Inc.

"Microsoft is open to Open Source. We actively foster application development using Open Data catalogues on a variety of application platforms to help government organizations meet their transparency, citizen participation and agency collaboration goals. By helping Canadian cities transform how they deliver services, our continued focus is on interoperability and helping close the digital divide."

Andre Charland, CEO, Nitobi.

"We're presently using open source components with Microsoft technologies to quickly respond to business needs and create innovative mobile and Web applications. Our VanGuide application and the underlying Open Data Application Framework are clear examples of the power of open standards on the Microsoft platform, enabled by open source to make information available for all citizens."

Supporting Resources:

--VanGuide: http://vanguide.cloudapp.net/

--Open Data Application Framework: http://odaf.codeplex.com/

--City of Edmonton Innovates with Microsoft on Open Data Catalogue: http://news.microsoft.ca/press_releases_business/archive/2010/01/14/city-of-edmonton-innovates-with-microsoft-on-open-data-catalogue.aspx

--Edmonton Open Data Catalogue: http://data.edmonton.ca

--City of Vancouver's Open Data Catalogue: http://data.vancouver.ca/

--Windows Azure^TM Platform: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsazure/windowsazure/

--Nitobi Software: http://www.nitobi.com/

Tags/Keywords:

Microsoft, Open Data, Nitobi, Nik Garkusha, Andre Charland, Open Source, hackathon, codefest, Open Gov, OGDI, Windows Azure, BING

About Microsoft Canada Inc.

Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Inc. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT"), the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Microsoft Canada is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario with MSN.CA offices located in Toronto and eight regional offices across the country. The company supports local communities across Canada by creating innovative technology and partnerships that help people realize their full potential.

(C) 2010 Microsoft Canada Inc. Microsoft is either a registered trademark or trademark Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Press inquiries only:

Microsoft Canada:

Chantelle Bernard, High Road Communications

cbernard@highroad.com; 416.644.2289

Nitobi:

Julie Szabo, Capulet Communications

julie@capulet.com; 604.726.6739

Microsoft Outlines New Opportunities at MIX10 for Developers to Create Compelling Experiences

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 18:58:00 GMT

Unveils end-to-end development platform with free tools for Windows Phone 7 Series and advances with Silverlight that will bring new applications, games and experiences to life.

LAS VEGAS - March 15, 2010 - Today at MIX10, Microsoft Corp. showcased advancements in its platform technologies that enable the developer and designer community to deliver compelling user experiences across a broad set of devices. Building on the excitement of the recently announced Windows^® Phone 7 Series, Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president, .NET Developer Platform, and Joe Belfiore, corporate vice president, Windows Phone Program Management, detailed the opportunity for developers to use proven technologies such as Microsoft Silverlight and the XNA Framework to build new mobile applications and 3-D Games.

"As the browser, server, Web and devices evolve, a focus on delivering consistently great user experiences has become paramount," Guthrie said. "By extending our familiar platform technologies and tools to phones, Microsoft is delivering the premier application development experience across a variety of devices and form factors."

End-to-End Application Development Platform for Windows Phone 7 Series

During the keynote, Microsoft provided the first deep dive into Windows Phone 7 Series application development. By combining Silverlight features for rich application development and the XNA Framework for games, Windows Phone 7 Series empowers millions of developers and designers to build visually stunning and immersive applications and games - one of the industry's most profitable mobile application categories - while taking advantage of device-specific capabilities. Specifically, developers will be able to take advantage of the following features:

--Accelerometer, an intuitive control that responds to motion

--A Microsoft Location Service to provide developers with a single point of reference to acquire location information

--Microsoft Notification Service for pushing information to the phone, regardless of whether or not an application is running

--Hardware-accelerated video with digital rights management (DRM)

--Internet Information Services Smooth Streaming for the industry's highest quality content viewing experience

--Multitouch

--Camera and microphone support

"Windows Phone 7 Series brings together a rich application environment, powerful hardware, a fresh approach to software and a smart new design," Belfiore said. "It was designed to generate incredible opportunities for developers and designers to quickly and easily deliver compelling applications and games. With the best developer tools, an established ecosystem and marketplace, and a path for developers to use their Silverlight and XNA Framework skill sets, we are delivering an application platform that is simple, powerful and inspiring."

Free Tools for Windows Phone 7 Series Developers and Designers

To further support an end-to-end development experience, Microsoft announced the availability of comprehensive tools support for Windows Phone 7 Series. The easy-to-install package includes previews of the following:

--Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Express for Windows Phone

--Windows Phone 7 Series add-in to use with Visual Studio 2010 RC

--XNA Game Studio 4.0

--Windows Phone 7 Series Emulator for application testing

--Expression Blend for Windows Phone Community Technology Preview (available as a separate download)

A Marketplace for Windows Phone 7 Series Applications

Microsoft also showed how developers and designers will be able to bring applications and games to market with a new Windows Phone Marketplace. The Marketplace features a panoramic design and active merchandising to increase the discoverability of games and applications, and supports one-time credit card purchases, mobile operator billing and advertising-funded applications. The Marketplace will also enable customers to try applications before buying them and allow developers to cross-promote their applications through deep linking.

Several leading companies will be creating exciting applications and games for Windows Phone 7 Series. They include The Associated Press, Archetype International Inc., AWS Convergence Technologies - WeatherBug, Citrix Systems Inc., Clarity Consulting Inc., Cypress Consulting, EA Mobile, Fandango Inc., Foursquare Labs Inc., frog design inc., Glu Mobile Inc., Graphic.ly, Hudson Entertainment Inc., IdentityMine Inc., IMDb.com Inc., Larva Labs, Match.com LLC, Matchbox Mobile Ltd., Microsoft Game Studios, Namco Networks America Inc., Oberon Media Inc., Pageonce Inc., Pandora Media Inc., Photobucket Inc., PopCap Games Inc., Seesmic, Shazam Entertainment Ltd., Sling Media, SPB Software Inc., stimulant, TeleCommunications Systems Inc., Touchality LLC and Vertigo Software Inc.

Continued Innovation With Silverlight and Expression Blend

Available for download today, Microsoft announced a release candidate (RC) for Silverlight 4, which builds on the beta version released at the Professional Developers Conference in November 2009. The Silverlight 4 RC provides powerful media and enterprise application and media capabilities, out-of-browser flexibility and world-class tools support via Visual Studio and Expression Blend with Sketchflow to enable robust application development and rich interactive experiences.

In addition, Microsoft unveiled the Expression Blend 4 Beta, a design and development workflow tool. New features such as Path Layout enable developers and designers to build and animate innovative user interface design via a groundbreaking visual layout mechanism, without the need to write code. Expression Blend 4 Beta also adds support for Silverlight 4, .NET Framework 4 and Visual Studio 2010.

Silverlight Customer Adoption

Silverlight adoption has continued at a rapid pace with installations approaching 60 percent of all Internet devices worldwide - an increase of nearly 15 percentage points in just four months. Customers such as Major League Soccer, BBC, eBay Inc., Netflix Inc., NBCOlympics.com and CT Corp., a Wolters Kluwer business, demonstrated how they are taking advantage of the power of Silverlight to deliver compelling consumer and enterprise experiences.

"Microsoft Silverlight technology will be the backbone of the video platform on our newly launched MLSsoccer.com," said Chris Schlosser, director of digital strategy for Major League Soccer. "Our work with Microsoft allows us to launch cutting-edge digital and mobile experiences for our loyal fans. As part of our increased focus on digital media, we view a rich video experience as absolutely critical to accomplishing our goal of 'super serving' MLS supporters."

All the latest from MIX10 is available at http://live.visitmix.com/press, including downloads of tools for Windows Phone 7 Series, the Silverlight 4 RC and Expression Blend 4 Beta, which will be available today.

About Microsoft

Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Co. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT") the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has nine regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca

For more information, press only

Allison Colalillo, on behalf of Microsoft Canada

416-368-8348 x227, acolalillo@highroad.com

Award in Recognition of the Inuktitut Version of Microsoft Windows Vista and Office 2007

Microsoft Canada News Centre — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:24:00 GMT

Award in Recognition of the Inuktitut Version of Microsoft Windows Vista and Office 2007

IQALUIT, Nunavut (February 12, 2010) - Honourable Lorne Kusugak, Minister of Community and Government Services, on behalf of Louis Tapardjuk, Minister of Languages, presented Microsoft Canada Inc. with an award in recognition of their contribution to Inuit Language promotion. The presentation occurred during a demonstration of 'Microsoft in the Inuit Language' at the Nunavut Language Summit in Iqaluit on February 11, 2010.

On behalf of the Government of Nunavut, I would like to thank Microsoft Canada, the Pirurvik Centre and others who contributed their time and expertise to make this interface available," said Minister Kusugak.

Since 2004, Microsoft Canada Inc., in collaboration with the Pirurvik Centre and the Government of Nunavut have been working on the development of the Microsoft Inuktitut Language Interface Packs. More than a million words have been translated and approximately 5000 of those terms newly created through this project. With this latest release, users of Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office are able to freely download Inuktitut versions of Windows XP, Windows Vista, Office 2003 and Office 2007.

"This is a great example of the government and the private sector working successfully together to help make the Inuit Language working language in our territory," said Tapardjuk. "This is a significant achievement in terms of making Inuktitut available in the information technology systems, and advancing the use of Inuktitut in the workplace."

"Microsoft Canada is committed to developing technology to help improve the lives of all Canadians," said Shann McGrail, Director of Education, Microsoft Canada. "This download will give Inuktitut-speaking Canadians the opportunity to communicate in their own language, something the rest of Canada takes for granted. We hope the language pack will help preserve the language and thank the government of Nunavut for helping us make this a reality."

The Inuktitut versions of Microsoft Windows Vista and Microsoft Office 2007 were officially launched last Spring. The introduction of language-specific programs allows for an increased use of Inuktitut in the workplace, in schools and in the home. Microsoft initiated their Local Language Program to support small and emerging market languages to create localized versions of Office 2003 and Windows XP. This is a first time a small language user group of less than 100,000 speakers are able to use Microsoft interface in their language.

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Media contact:

Napatchie Kolola

Department of Culture, Language, Elders and Youth

Telephone: (867) 975.5526

E-mail: nkolola@gov.nu.ca

Allison Stokes

Media Profile

Telephone: (416) 342-1830

Email: allison.stokes@mediaprofile.com