REDMOND, Wash., March 6, 2002 — Microsoft Corp. today announced the first companies to meet the stringent membership requirements of its prestigious Gold Certified Partner Program for Security Solutions. They are Ramesys Ltd.; BindView Corp.; Convergent Computing; Exodus, a Cable & Wireless Service; Gorilla Consultants; IIS Goliath Network Divisions; ITdesign Software Projects & Consulting GmbH; and Netivity Solutions Inc.
In support of Microsofts overall security initiatives, the certification identifies services organizations that have demonstrated the highest standards of quality for securing enterprise business systems using a Microsoft® platform.
“Obtaining membership in the Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Program for Security Solutions is a great achievement. The strict and objective competency requirements for certification help ensure that customers seeking security solutions will receive premier levels of quality when hiring a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner for Security Solutions,”
said Rosa Garcia, general manager of Worldwide Partner Sales and Marketing at Microsoft.
“Microsoft is proud to welcome these industry leaders as our certified allies in bringing secure solutions to market. We share their commitment to developing the best technology, tools, support and resources to enable trustworthy computing in the industry.”
Companies in this program have surpassed the high benchmarks set by Microsoft and have proved their ability to architect, develop, deploy and manage security solutions. Furthermore, they have demonstrated that they are leaders in the security industry, not only in their products and solutions but also in their standards of behavior.
“Ramesys is proud to be the first partner in the world to achieve membership in the Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Program for Security Solutions,”
said Nick Benedek, chief technology officer at Ramesys.
“This demonstrates our ongoing commitment to providing secure, scalable and available business solutions based upon Microsofts technologies. Membership in this program builds upon our existing Microsoft Gold Certified Partner accreditations in Collaborative Solution and Enterprise Systems, and ensures that Ramesys will continue to offer outstanding design, implementation and support services for secure and trustworthy Microsoft solutions.”
“We are delighted to be the first U.S. company selected as a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner for Security Solutions,”
said Michael Atalla, director of Microsoft Strategies at BindView.
“BindViews designation as a leading security solutions and services provider and a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner for Security Solutions underscores our ongoing commitment to providing our customers with powerful tools and services to help secure, automate and lower the cost of maintaining their IT infrastructure. In addition, BindViews recently launched .Security Solution portfolio illustrates our ability to move forward to meet the changing and developing security needs of Microsoft customers as they begin to implement the .NET Framework.”
In addition to providing partners that are certified with benefits such as early access to software, marketing and sales tools and resources, and priority referrals, certification also offers customers the means to identify those companies that are committed to the highest industry standards in building and maintaining end-use solutions.
“ITdesign is proud to be one of the first Microsoft Gold Partners in the security area,”
said Heribert Springnagel, sales manager and Microsoft Alliance manager at ITdesign.
“Our customers will find it reassuring that the security of their IT infrastructure is planned and implemented by the only Microsoft Gold Security Partner in Austria. In our relationship with Microsoft, this certification represents a milestone, which augurs further successful projects and thus contented customers in the future.”
Microsofts Gold Certified Partner Program for Security Solutions was announced in December 2001 and is part of Microsofts overall commitment to working with partners to develop and deliver the best technology, tools, support and resources to enable success in the security industry. The Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Program for Security Solutions is the ninth category in the Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Program, which was unveiled in January 2001. Since then, more than 947 Microsoft Certified Partners have achieved Microsoft Gold Certified Partner status in more than 70 countries and territories.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.
Microsoft is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corp. 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.
For more information about Microsoft Certification programs:
http://www.microsoft.com/partner/Partnering/
Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ on Microsofts corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. Journalists and analysts may contact Microsofts Rapid Response Team for additional assistance.
