Microsoft Announces Worldwide Launch of SQL Server 7.0

LAS VEGAS, Nov. 16, 1998 — Microsoft Corp. today announced the availability of Microsoft® SQL Server
™
7.0, the new enterprise database software that empowers businesses to turn information into results. The eagerly anticipated new database software was launched today at COMDEX/Fall ’98, and to more than 30,000 customers and partners in 53 countries around the world. In addition, more than 300 ISVs are demonstrating best-of-breed applications designed for SQL Server 7.0, and 13,000 Microsoft Certified Solution Providers (MCSPs) are fully prepared to support immediate customer development and deployment projects. SQL Server 7.0 is expected to be available in the reseller channel within 45 days.

Microsoft also announced today that 12 customers, including Pennzoil Co., HarperCollins Publishers Inc., barnesandnoble.com inc., SportsLine USA, Elcor Corp. and L.A. Cellular, are in production with mission-critical applications for enterprise resource planning (ERP), data warehousing and electronic commerce. These application deployments represent the culmination of the most extensive and innovative quality assurance program ever executed for an enterprise database software program, clearly demonstrating the solid reliability of SQL Server 7.0.

“SQL Server 7.0 is a major breakthrough for Microsoft database technology,”
said Steve Ballmer, president of Microsoft.
“It’s the complete package, delivering the scalability, reliability and ease of use companies of all sizes are looking for to meet the needs of their business-critical applications.”

SQL Server 7.0 Empowers Businesses of All Sizes to Turn Information Into Results

SQL Server 7.0 is the database for the Windows® operating system-compatible that brings business advantage and improved decision-making to all levels of the organization through the power of scalable business solutions, data warehousing and integration with Microsoft Office.

SQL Server 7.0 offers major advancements in transaction performance, online backup and replication, as well as innovations in auto-tuning and auto-configuration, making it the ideal platform for business-critical applications. Satisfying unprecedented customer demand, more than 300 business applications representing all major horizontal and vertical markets are expected to be available for SQL Server 7.0 within 90 days of the product’s launch.

“SQL Server is one of the fastest-growing database platform for SAP R/3, and based on early customer feedback, we expect a dramatic increase in demand for the latest Microsoft database version,”
said Guenther Tolkmit, senior vice president of marketing, SAP AG.
“Our customers are very satisfied with improvements in the scalability, reliability and ease of use of SQL Server 7.0. In fact we have five customers running their productive R/3 systems on SQL Server 7.0 today, and more than 100 SAP customers will begin to deploy SQL Server 7.0 upon its release.”

SQL Server 7.0 is the easiest platform on which to design, build, manage and use data warehousing solutions, bringing information to all organizational levels in time to make critical business decisions. It is the first relational database management system (RDBMS) to come complete with integrated Data Transformation Services, OLAP Services and Microsoft Repository 2.0. In addition, the Microsoft Data Warehousing Alliance, a coalition of top data warehousing vendors supporting a common architectural framework, ensures that customers have access to a wide range of highly interoperable solutions from a variety of software companies.

With its tight integration with Office 2000 and Windows, SQL Server 7.0 will offer ubiquitous access to data and increased productivity and ease of use, utilizing an organization’s skill set and investment in existing technology. For the first time, companies will be able to combine the familiarity and ease of use of Microsoft Access and Microsoft Excel with the scalability and reliability of SQL Server 7.0 to empower users with better information access.

Rigorous Quality Assurance in SQL Server 7.0 Ensures Reliability and Compatibility

With over 17 months of testing and more than 100,000 beta sites, SQL Server 7.0 is the most broadly and thoroughly tested enterprise RDBMS ever released, which ensures that customers get rock-solid reliability for mission-critical applications. The quality assurance program is centered on customers and ISVs, as well as extensive reliability, compatibility and performance testing. Microsoft’s commitment to this testing is demonstrated through the Early Adopter Program, ISV Migration Labs and the 1K Database Challenge, under which the company completed the migration of 1,000 customer production databases to SQL Server 7.0 with a 98.5 percent hands-free conversion rate.

In operation since January, the ISV Migration Labs provide compatibility and performance testing to 150 ISVs representing the enterprise resource planning (ERP), accounting, customer management, document management, health-care, retail and data warehousing markets. Microsoft also supports full-time Redmond-based labs for SAP, PeopleSoft Inc. and The Baan Co., which conduct extensive joint design, development and testing to ensure full compatibility and robustness with their ERP systems.

The Early Adopter Program put 12 ERP, data warehousing and electronic commerce customers worldwide into production with applications built on SQL Server 7.0. These customers are Pennzoil, HarperCollins, barnesandnoble.com, Southwest Securities, L.A. Cellular, SportsLine USA, Elcor, Lyondell Chemical Co., Applied Automation Techniques Inc., Baxa Corp., BITBURGER Brauerei TH. Simon GmbH and Mothercare UK Ltd.

Availability and Support

SQL Server 7.0 is scheduled to be available worldwide in the reseller channel within the next 45 days. SQL Server 7.0 is planned to be available in French, German, Spanish and Japanese within 60 days.

In anticipation of strong demand for SQL Server 7.0, Microsoft has increased the number of engineers supporting SQL Server by 70 percent. Product support is also available through Microsoft Authorized Support Centers (ASC). Support Online is located at http://support.microsoft.com
/support/sql/ and is available 24 hours a day so customers can search any time for details on how to get the most out of SQL Server 7.0 and its new features.

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.

Microsoft and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

For online product information:

Visit the SQL Server Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/sql/ .

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