REDMOND, Wash., Oct. 23, 1997 — With the early success of Microsoft® Money 98 and Money 98 Financial Suite, Microsoft Corp. is leading the PC Data personal finance software charts – achieving a 53 percent unit share at retail.* Customer and industry response to the two products has been extremely strong since they became available Sept. 15, 1997, with Money 98 and Money 98 Financial Suite now the No. 1 and No. 2 best-selling personal finance software products at retail. Microsoft Money 98 is outselling Quicken more than 2-to-1.
“Microsoft’s Money 98 Financial Suite continues to excite our consumers with its new features,” said Larry Mondry, CompUSA vice president of merchandising. “Money 98 gives our consumers the complete, all-in-one financial planning software solution that allows them to track their investments online and plan for their financial future.”
Microsoft Money 98 and Money 98 Financial Suite are popular in stores across all retail segments, including through Best Buy Co. Inc., CompUSA, Costco Wholesale, Egghead Computing and Office Depot. The products’ success at key retail outlets exceeds initial projections and demonstrates Microsoft Money’s continued expansion in the personal finance software arena.
“Microsoft Money 98 Financial Suite is a strong financial software package that offers Best Buy consumers the ability to do everything from balancing a checkbook to planning for retirement,” said Erick Vincent, Best Buy senior buyer. “Consumer demand for Microsoft Money 98 continues to grow, spurred by enhancements to its budgeting features and improved investment management.”
Consumers Downloading Trial in Record Numbers
In addition to the remarkable results at retail, more than 75,000 consumers have tried Microsoft Money 98 Financial Suite, from the Money Web site, http://www.microsoft.com/money/ , since its introduction Sept. 15. New users are downloading Money 98 Financial Suite in record numbers, with more than 2,000 consumers trying the product every day. While the trial version allows consumers to use the product for 90 days, many of these consumers have already decided to switch to Money 98 Financial Suite.
“I’ve been a loyal Quicken user for the past eight years and have recently decided to switch to Money 98 Financial Suite because it does a better job of providing me with everything I need to take charge of my finances, both short- and long-term,” said Jim Johnson, co-owner, Clarksdale Freight Co. “I’m particularly impressed with Money 98 Financial Suite’s Goal Planner, which automatically pulls together my financial information so I can focus on creating different savings scenarios that help me plan for my future. The direct Internet connection to the Investor and Money Insider Web sites provides easy access the best tools and information for managing my investments and making smart financial decisions.”
The Money 98 Converter Wizard for Quicken allows consumers to easily convert their Quicken data to Microsoft Money 98 – without changes to the original data. The fast and simple conversion process takes minutes and enables Money 98 users to get up and running right away with the latest personal finance manager software.
“Money 98’s popularity and continued expansion in the retail arena signals Microsoft’s intent to close the gap in the competitive personal finance management software segment,” said Lewis Levin, vice president of the desktop finance division at Microsoft. “For the first time in the history of this software category, Microsoft Money products are winning reviews against Quicken, and our early successes indicate that we’re helping consumers fulfill important financial management needs.”
Microsoft Money 98 Widely Chosen by PC Manufacturers
While Money 98 Financial Suite is available at retail, Microsoft has made Money 98 available to PC manufacturers so that consumers who have never used a personal finance product before can get started using one with their new PC purchase. The product has been widely embraced by leading PC manufacturers – Acer America Corp., Compaq Computer Corp., Dell Computer Corp., Gateway 2000 Inc., Packard Bell NEC, Sony Corp. and Toshiba America Information Systems have all elected to place Money 98 on their upcoming PCs.
First Product to Offer Brokerage Statement Download
Money 98 also announced this week that consumers have the ability to download brokerage statement information directly from Charles Schwab & Company Inc. to Money 98 Financial Suite, the first personal finance manager software product to offer consumers such a service.
Money 98 Financial Suite offers connections to more than 100 financial institutions – twice the number of any other personal finance software.. Microsoft has doubled the number of participating financial institutions since 1996. With over 100 financial institutions, charge and credit card issuers, and brokerage firms as participants, Money is the most interactive, connected one-stop financial planning shop currently available.
With the release of Money 98 Financial Suite, Microsoft transformed its personal finance management software from a basic electronic checking account manger to an extraordinary financial planning suite. Its tightly integrated features and unprecedented customized service accomplish a broad range of financial tasks – from day-to-day management to long-term investment and financial planning. The Microsoft Money 98 Financial Suite is the first personal finance software program to provide consumers with a complete, Internet-based solution to managing personal finances – with two Web sites, the Money Insider
™
personal finance online service and Microsoft Investor, dedicated to helping consumers plan and track financial performance. With more than 100,000 visits per day, Microsoft Investor is one of the leading investment Web sites on the Internet today.
Microsoft Money 98 Financial Suite Challenge
To help consumers get acquainted with Money 98 Financial Suite, Microsoft has created the Money 98 Financial Suite Challenge. Consumers not only get a chance to test drive Money to see how it can benefit them, but hidden within the Money 98 Challenge file are the names of five U.S. presidents,four out of five of whom have a common link Those consumers who can identify the five presidents, which one is the odd one out and why can enter the Money Challenge Sweepstakes for a chance to win one of three Compaq Presario 4814 personal computers, courtesy of Compaq Computer Corp. For a free trial download or to enter the Challenge sweepstakes, visit the Money 98 Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/money/ , or submit a 3x 5 card with your name and address to: Microsoft Money Challenge, P.O. Box 5162, El Toro, CA 92630. The Money 98 Challenge sweepstakes runs from Oct. 23, 1997 through Jan. 15, 1998.
About Microsoft
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.
* Source: PC Data, personal finance market on units, Windows® platform, first week of published PC Data weekly reporting (Oct. 5-11, 1997), with over 30 percent of retail customer segment covered
Microsoft, Money Insider 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.
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 Microsoft’s corporate information pages.
