REDMOND, Wash., Aug. 6, 1996 — Microsoft Corp. today announced that more than 50 Internet service providers (ISPs) are hosting Web sites created with the Microsoft®
FrontPage
™
Web authoring and management tool. In the coming weeks, both BBN Planet and UUNET Technologies will join this group of ISPs, which are among the first to fully support the dynamic features that make FrontPage 1.1 the leading Web authoring and management tool in the market today. This rapid adoption demonstrates the broad acceptance that FrontPage 1.1 has achieved in the two months since its release.
BBN Planet will integrate FrontPage into its Web Advantage Silver Web hosting service in the coming weeks.
“We are excited to include FrontPage as part of our Web Advantage Silver service,”
said Paul Gudonis, president and general manager of BBN Planet.
“With FrontPage we will offer customers seamless, reliable, high-performance Web hosting at an affordable price.”
“We are delighted to see such strong support for Microsoft FrontPage,”
said Richard Fade, vice president of the desktop applications division at Microsoft.
“ISPs play a key role in our goal to bring the power of Web publishing with Microsoft FrontPage to the broadest range of PC users.”
UUNET Technologies is one of the world’s largest Internet service providers, with local access in over 745 cities around the globe.
“As the only Internet solutions company that’s totally dedicated to business, we strive to be a leader in meeting our business customers’ needs,”
said John Sidgmore, president and CEO of UUNET Technologies.
“Today’s small and medium-sized businesses demand end-to-end Web solutions. Microsoft FrontPage, combined with UUNET’s Web hosting services, allows us to meet those demands.”
With licensing of FrontPage surpassing 75,000 units in just two months, and the nearly half a million people who downloaded the free beta, the number of ISPs rolling out FrontPage-based Web hosting services is quickly growing. Arizona-based Advanced Internet Services from Sedona On-Line was one of the first ISPs to act on the opportunity to host FrontPage Web sites.
“When FrontPage 1.1 became available in the retail channel this past June, we saw an incredible increase in the number of customers requesting FrontPage Web sites,”
said Arnie Wolen, president of Advanced Internet Services from Sedona On-Line.
“Today, many of our new customers are a direct result of our early move to support the FrontPage Server Extensions.”
Open, Multiplatform Support
Any ISP can host standard HTML Web sites created with Microsoft FrontPage. However, only ISPs that support the Microsoft FrontPage Server Extensions can offer customers all the advantages that FrontPage together with the extensions provide. These advantages include a broader set of Microsoft FrontPage features such as remote authoring, remote site management, and WebBot
™
components. WebBot components allow nonprogrammers to create professional quality Web sites by simply
“dropping”
into their Web sites dynamic features such as full-text search, threaded discussion groups and registration forms.
FrontPage Server Extensions are compiled CGI programs that run on the Windows NT® operating system and the UNIX®
platform and that work with popular Web server software including Microsoft Internet Information Server. The FrontPage Server Extensions are available to ISPs at no charge and come with documentation and Quick Installation guidelines.
“Installing the FrontPage Server Extensions was straightforward and required very little time,”
said Michael Strutton, manager of Web services of MindSpring Enterprises.
“Getting up and running quickly allowed us to respond in real time to customer requests to host FrontPage Web sites.”
Providers that install the Extensions receive a referral link from Microsoft’s Web site to the provider’s site, timely FrontPage product information, and access to FrontPage beta programs. To further empower ISPs, Microsoft has developed the FrontPage software developers kit (SDK) that enables ISPs to add value to their services by equipping them with tools to write custom templates and wizards for their customers.
FrontPage 1.1 includes a number of technical breakthroughs that provide users a fast and easy way to create and manage professional-quality Web sites without programming. New features include easier installation, WYSIWYG table support, hypertext markup language (HTML) frames support, Auto Recalculate Links, WYSIWYG image alignment, and enhanced integration with the Microsoft Office office suite. FrontPage has garnered rave reviews from the consumer and trade industry media, including PC Computing’s
“Best Award”
and Computer Reseller News’
“Editor’s Choice Award.”
ISPs interested in hosting FrontPage Web sites can obtain information about and download the free Microsoft FrontPage Extensions at http://microsoft.com/frontpage/ . Computer users worldwide can obtain up-to-date listings of FrontPage ISPs and information on Microsoft FrontPage and other Microsoft products at the same site.
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, FrontPage, WebBot and Windows NT are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
UNIX is a registered trademark in the United States and other countries, licensed exclusively through X/Open Company Ltd.
Internet Service Providers Supporting
Microsoft Frontpage 1.1
The ACT Group
Advanced Engineering and Research Associates
Advanced Internet Services
Akorn.net
American Intelligent Systems
AT & T Easy World Wide Web (EW3)
BitShop
Buckeye Internet Services
Canlinks – Canada
CERFnet
CETLink
Chrysalis Online Services
ComCity
The Computer Shop Netlink
Coron
Creative Friendly Technologies
Critical Mass Communications
Crnet
CSD Internetworks
CyFi
Digiserve WebService – U.K.
Digital Publishing Resources
FLEXnet
FrontpageNow
Glen Roberts Media
HarvardNet
Hiway Technologies
Homecom
IMV Internet
Infomatique – Ireland
Internet & Web Services
Internet Express
Internet Images Worldwide
Internet Presence Providers
Judd’s Online Service
Millennium 3 Concepts
MindSpring
National Knowledge Networks
NetAxis Web Site Storage
Realacom
shore.net
SineWave
SummitSoft
Superb Internet
Syix
TIAC: The Internet Access Company
vivid.net
WebWorld
Wing.Net
WonderNet – Taiwan
Computer users worldwide can obtain up-to-date listings of FrontPage ISPs at http://microsoft.com/frontpage/
For more information, press only:
Michelle Glau, Waggener Edstrom, (206) 637-9097, [email protected]
For online product information:
Microsoft Web site: (http://microsoft.com/)
Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://microsoft.com/presspass/ on Microsoft’s corporate information pages.
