SAN JOSE, Calif., April 17, 2000 — MSN TM eShop, continuing its momentum in the marketplace, today announced its marquee sponsorship for Shop.org’s E-Retailing 2000, April 16-18 in San Jose, Calif. The conference, titled
“Back-End Solutions: Building a Better Customer Experience,” addresses a broad range of operational and business issues geared to help retailers succeed in the fiercely competitive, burgeoning online marketplace. Microsoft® Commerce Server, Microsoft Passport, the Microsoft bCentral TM small-business portal and MSN eShop will exhibit the products and services that deliver Microsoft platforms for back-end Web site solutions and MSN Web properties that attract customers.
“We are proud to be the marquee sponsor of this year’s E-Retailing 2000,”
said Jim Kinsella, vice president of MSN Sales.
“We have worked with many Shop.org merchants to create our soon-to-be-launched advertising packages that better connect online merchants with consumers when they are ready to buy. Unite MSN eShop with Microsoft bCentral efforts to grow online businesses, Microsoft Passport’s e-wallet and Microsoft’s Commerce Server, and e-retailers will see Microsoft’s ability to deliver a true platform-to-portal experience.”
MSN eShop, launched last November with a complete online shopping experience for consumers, showed tremendous growth over MSN Shopping the previous holiday season. Three times as many people chose to shop online at MSN, resulting in six times as many click-throughs to merchants on the site. In addition, recent @plan research shows that of the three major portals’ audiences, the MSN audience has been online longer and is more likely to shop and make purchases online. Microsoft products and services exhibited at E-Retailing 2000 will include these:
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MSN eShop delivers flexible options that allow merchants to determine the appropriate levels of merchandising, sponsorship and advertising to promote their offerings to consumers on eShop and across the MSN portal. Merchants also have the ability to work with MSN to provide new and timely content that changes as often as daily. At the event, MSN eShop will announce its new merchant programs and provide a sneak peak at the new eShop user interface to the thousands of e-retailers in attendance.
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Microsoft bCentral helps small businesses in three key areas: getting a business started online by connecting to the Web and building a Web site, promoting and marketing online to reach new customers, and managing a business more effectively.
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Microsoft Passport allows consumers to use a single sign-in name and electronic
“wallet”
at participating sites, reducing the amount of information they need to remember or retype. Using strong encryption and privacy policies, Passport also helps ensure the security of consumers’ personal information and online transactions. Passport makes online purchases easy, fast and secure. -
Windows
®
DNA 2000 is Microsoft’s platform for quickly building and deploying intranet, extranet and e-commerce solutions. Microsoft will preview Microsoft Commerce Server 2000, the follow-up release to the widely adopted Microsoft Site Server Commerce Edition 3.0. A comprehensive system for building and deploying business-to-consumer and business-to-business e-commerce solutions, Commerce Server 2000 will enable customers to get online faster and build highly personalized sites tailored for their specific business processes, and empower business managers to understand and control their online business.
On Monday, April 17, MSN eShop will sponsor a reception for author Geoffrey Moore, who will sign copies of his latest book,
“Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers.”
A drawing will also be held; prizes include eBooks, signed copies of Moore’s book and copies of Windows 2000.
About MSN and Microsoft
MSN Sales delivers customized advertising solutions for the Everyday Web. MSN is the network of Internet services from Microsoft that helps people better organize the Web around what’s important to them. The network of MSN services, located on the Web at http://www.msn.com/ , helps people easily stay in touch with friends and colleagues, make smart and secure purchasing decisions, and get more done. MSN offers award-winning e-mail functionality; personal communications services; wireless services information; customizable access to news; popular sites for health, personal finance, traveling, investing, automotive services, shopping and more; an online community; a Web search engine and directories; and top-rated Internet access.
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.
Microsoft, MSN, bCentral and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the 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.
