REDMOND, Wash., and SANTA CLARA, Calif., Oct. 17, 2003 — The MSN® network of Internet services, the world’s No. 1 online destination, and Network Associates Inc. (NYSE:NET), the leading provider of intrusion prevention solutions, announced a worldwide relationship today that McAfee® Security’s anti-virus and personal firewall services will be available with the soon-to-be released MSN® Premium subscription service for broadband users in the United States. To help protect users against online security threats such as viruses and hacker attacks, MSN Premium subscribers will receive McAfee VirusScan®
and McAfee Personal Firewall Plus desktop-protection products as part of their subscription service. In addition, MSN Plus and MSN Dial-up subscribers will be able to access trial versions of the services and purchase them through the MSN site for a discounted price.
“By delivering the best anti-virus and firewall capabilities available from the industry leader, MSN Premium will offer people comprehensive safety solutions at a tremendous value,” said Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice president of MSN at Microsoft Corp. “Combined with other safety services such as strong parental controls, a flexible Pop-Up Guard for managing pop-up information and excellent junk e-mail filters, MSN Premium will offer customers outstanding protection from online threats.”
Online safety is online consumers’ No. 1 concern today, and security services are the feature they are most willing to pay for to help protect their PC and related information.* Broadband users, in particular, face additional online security risks because of their always-on connection.
McAfee VirusScan is a completely automatic anti-virus software service that helps protect a consumer’s PC, files and e-mail address book from high-risk viruses, worms and Trojan horses such as Sobig, Lovesan, Nimda and Code Red. McAfee Personal Firewall Plus helps prevent potential hackers and other Internet threats from entering and infecting users’ PCs by acting as a protective barrier between the PC and the Internet.
These premium services provide users with desktop solutions that go beyond e-mail protection to help guard against infection from instant messaging, peer-to-peer file sharing, Web site downloads and more. Both services will be offered to MSN Premium customers as part of their MSN Premium subscription.
“Recent threats such as Lovesan and Sobig have demonstrated the need for consumer users to have up-to-date, comprehensive and easy-to-use security technology installed on their computers,” said Todd Gebhart, vice president of OEM and partnership sales with the McAfee System Protection Group at Network Associates. “Network Associates is pleased to work with MSN to offer comprehensive online protection available via a premium Web service offering.”
MSN Premium, which is designed for broadband-connected households, includes advanced communication options that give consumers universal access to their complete e-mail, calendar and contact information from virtually any Internet-connected location, using their choice of software — from a basic Internet browser to an advanced client such as Microsoft® Outlook®
. Rich digital information-sharing features allow customers to get the most out of their digital photo collections via e-mail, MSN Messenger or the Web; and consumers can easily share their calendar with friends and family. In addition to the McAfee VirusScan and McAfee Personal Firewall Plus services, MSN Premium delivers a secure experience for consumers, including advanced junk e-mail filters, parental controls and a Pop-Up Guard for managing pop-up ads.
Availability
MSN Premium, featuring McAfee security services, is scheduled to be available this winter.
About MSN
MSN attracts more than 350 million unique users worldwide per month. With localized versions available globally in 34 markets and 18 languages, MSN is a world leader in delivering Web services to consumers and ad sales to businesses worldwide. MSN 8 is the first Internet software product to have earned the trusted Good Housekeeping Seal. The most useful and innovative online service today, MSN brings consumers everything they need from the Web to make the most of their time online. MSN is located on the Web at http://www.msn.com/ . MSN worldwide sites are located at h http://www.msn.com/worldwide.ashx .
About Network Associates
With headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., Network Associates Inc. (NYSE: NET) creates best-of-breed computer security solutions that prevent intrusions on networks and protect computer systems from the next generation of blended attacks and threats. Offering two families of products, McAfee System Protection Solutions, securing desktops and servers, and McAfee Network Protection Solutions, ensuring the protection and performance of the corporate network, Network Associates offers computer security to large enterprises, governments, small and medium-sized businesses, and consumers. These two product portfolios incorporate Network Associates’ leading McAfee Security, Sniffer® Technologies and Magic Solutions®
product lines. For more information, Network Associates can be reached at (972) 963-8000 or on the Internet at http://www.networkassociates.com/ .
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.
* According to Microsoft internal measurement
Microsoft, MSN and Outlook are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Network Associates, McAfee, Sniffer , Magic Solutions and VirusScan are registered trademarks or trademarks of Network Associates Inc. and/or its affiliates in the US and/or other countries. Sniffer®
brand products are made only by Network Associates Inc.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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