Boca Raton, Fla., April 25, 2002 — In the opening keynote address to the Latin America Enterprise Solutions Conference 2002, (ESC), the region’s most important enterprise technology forum, where Microsoft and its strategic partners, Accenture, Compaq, HP and Unisys presented their technological solutions for Latin American businesses, Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft Corp, commented:
“Our customers and partners in Latin America are leaders in their acceptance and open-mindedness to new technology. This is reflected in the growing number of Internet users, which is now 35 percent; a five-year annual growth rate of 32 percent in Web service business, and in the fact that this is the Number One region worldwide in information technology spending growth. We expect this growth will remain steady during the next several years, with that e-commerce forecasted forecast to total $29.6 billion by 2003.”
During his keynote address, Steve Ballmer described the explosive growth in Latin America during the last five years as well as the positive growth expectations in the region. In this context, he emphasized the importance of .Net Enterprise Servers as a critical first step in getting connected with .Net and also highlighted the business agility that the Latin American enterprises will gain by adopting Microsoft’s .Net platform.
Microsoft’s .NET is software technology for connecting the world of information, people, systems and devices. In the enterprise market, .NET provides businesses with the agility to turn the accelerating pace of change into a competitive advantage.
During his participation at ESC 2002, Mauricio Santillan, Regional Vice President of Microsoft in Latin America, said: “First, we are continuing to invest resources in Latin America, which is the cornerstone of Microsoft’s international strategy. We are leading the growth of businesses in Latin America by providing innovative products, solutions, and consulting services. It is no secret that Latin America is one of the fastest-growing regions in the world in terms of information technology. Microsoft began in Latin America with our Mexican subsidiary 15 years ago, we now have 14 subsidiaries and more than 1,000 employees throughout Central America, South America and the Caribbean. Our .NET vision will become a reality in Latin America just as it has in North America and Europe.”
Ballmer also discussed the three technological revolutions that have impacted the business world by connecting computers around the world: the first was the personal computer — this year there are well over half a billion personal computers installed and in use around the world in which we launched MS-DOS; the second revolution was the graphical user interface revolution that really caused a dramatic increase in the acceptance of computers and we participated in with Windows; and the third revolution was the Internet revolution in which Microsoft launched Internet Explorer.
“XML Web Services is the next revolution,” said Ballmer. “Microsoft’s platform for this important big shift is .Net. Microsoft’s family of .Net Enterprise Servers are the best platform for delivering rich and compelling XML Web Services for enterprises. They offer three significant advantages: the ability to empower knowledge workers, allowing enterprises to touch their customers more effectively, and work more efficiently and productively with partners, vendors and others who add value to their products,” said Ballmer.
Mauricio Santillan explained Microsoft’s enterprise vision: “This year, we will focus on three specific ways that technology can help enterprises achieve their potential: realizing return on investment, planning for the future and safeguarding the value of assets. With this in mind, we have gained a thorough understanding of the markets and industries in which our clients work, as well as the growth opportunities that are present, thus this year we are approaching technology applications with a strong focus on the business implications that they will have for enterprises.”
“We are also committed to providing an outstanding experience for the end user in Latin America. Our main focus continues to be MSN. In Mexico, we have partnered with Telmex, positioning ourselves as the number one Internet destination in the country. We are confident that we will extend this model to other countries in the region. Through YupiMSN, a leading Spanish-language portal, we are also expanding our Internet services beyond Mexico. YupiMSN has a vision of bringing the richest and most diverse Internet experience to Spanish speakers throughout the Americas,” Santillan added.
About Microsoft
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.
*For more information about Microsoft Latin America, please visit:
http://microsoft.com/latam/prensa/default.asp .
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