— Microsoft Corp. today announced it has signed an agreement making Amazon.com the Premier Music Merchant on the MSN
™
Shopping channel, the MSN.com portal page and other selected properties in the MSN network of Internet services. As a result, users of MSN will have one-click access to the Internet’s No. 1 music retailer.
Amazon.com’s Premier Music Merchant status earns it high visibility in a number of ways. As the exclusive music provider on the MSN.com portal page, Amazon.com will have a Buy Music Quick Link as well as a rotating contextual merchandising message. These promotions will provide broad access to the active user audience and extensive Web reach of MSN. Amazon.com will also take the Premier Anchor position on the MSN Shopping channel for the Music and Video area, providing users of MSN direct links to Amazon.com for finding and buying their favorite CD, DVD and VHS products. In addition, Amazon.com will have promotional offerings across the MSN network of Internet services, consisting of advertising banners, text placements and graphical links.
“We welcome Amazon.com as our Premier Music Merchant on MSN Shopping and the MSN.com portal and as an advertiser across MSN,”
said Charlotte Guyman, general manager of the online sales and marketing team at Microsoft.
“We think MSN offers Amazon.com the best of both worlds – tremendous reach off the home page and the targeted shopping audience provided by MSN Shopping.”
“We are very pleased to be joining MSN Shopping because it will give more people the opportunity to experience the ease and convenience of shopping at Amazon.com,”
said David Risher, senior vice president of product development at Amazon.com.
“Already, our music store is the No. 1 place to buy CDs on the Net, thanks to the thousands of people a day who discover the Amazon.com shopping experience: selection, price, convenience and service.”
Amazon.com
Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq
“AMZN” ), the Internet’s No. 1 book and music retailer, opened its virtual doors on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and quickly became Earth’s Biggest Bookstore® . Today, the Amazon.com store has expanded to offer more than 3 million books, music CDs, audiobooks, videos, DVDs, computer games and other titles, plus easy-to-use search-and-locate features, secure credit card payment, personalized recommendations, streamlined ordering through 1-Click SM technology and direct shipping.
Microsoft Online Sales and Marketing
MSN offers online advertising and sponsorship opportunities. The integration of the Microsoft portal site and best-of-breed Internet services into a cohesive network establishes MSN.com as one of the most visited sites on the Internet. In addition to this broad consumer reach, properties on MSN deliver a highly qualified audience to businesses, helping them achieve their sales and marketing goals. MSN offerings include sponsorships of content and service segments, banner ads, promotions, cross-network packages and rich media online commercials using Windows® Media Technologies.
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.
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Microsoft, MSN and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Amazon.com, Earth’s Biggest Bookstore and 1-Click are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Amazon.com Inc.
Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, Amazon.com’s limited operating history, the unpredictability of its future revenues, and risks associated with capacity constraints, management of growth and new business opportunities. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com’s financial results is included in the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 1997, and the quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 1998.
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