SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 10, 2001 — In a keynote address at Macworld Expo today, Kevin Browne, general manager of the Macintosh Business Unit at Microsoft Corp., announced a broad set of Microsoft(r) products designed specifically for the Macintosh customer. These products include the beta release of the Microsoft Outlook(r) 2001 for Mac messaging and collaboration client and a future version of Office for Mac OS X, currently in development. Browne also highlighted strong customer support for the recently released Office 2001 for Mac, which is now available in six languages.
“Since its October availability, more than 250,000 Macintosh customers have acquired Office 2001 for Mac, surpassing our expectations,” said Browne. “This level of positive response is a testament to the value and quality of Microsoft’s Macintosh products. We’re looking forward to continued growth of Office 2001 and further acceptance of future product offerings.”
In anticipation of Apple’s upcoming operating system, Microsoft previewed a future version of Office designed to run on Mac OS X. Office for Mac OS X is scheduled to be available in the fall of 2001. In addition, Microsoft announced that for a limited time customers who immediately acquire Office 2001 are eligible to get the future version of Office for Mac OS X for a special upgrade price of $149, 50 percent off the suggested retail upgrade price. Details are available at http://www.microsoft.com/mac/ .
Outlook 2001 for Mac Beta Available
Microsoft also announced availability of the beta release of Outlook 2001 for the Macintosh. Outlook 2001 is the premier messaging and collaboration client for Microsoft Exchange Server, taking collaboration on the Macintosh platform to the next level by enabling organizations to be more productive. Outlook 2001 is the only Macintosh-based application that both fully utilizes the Macintosh platform and provides seamless interoperability with the millions of customers using Microsoft Outlook today. With Outlook 2001, Macintosh customers will have the ability to easily and seamlessly communicate and share contacts, schedules, tasks and more with other users of Outlook on either the Windows(r) operating system or the Macintosh. The final version of Outlook 2001 for Mac is expected to be broadly available in the summer of 2001.
Microsoft Hardware Devices Support Macintosh
In response to growing customer requests, Macintosh drivers are now available for Microsoft’s most popular optical mouse, trackball and keyboard products. Mac customers can experience the comfort, style, performance and reliability provided by award-winning Microsoft mouse products and keyboards.
The optical mouse products – the IntelliMouse(r) Explorer, IntelliMouse Optical, WheelMouse Optical, Trackball Explorer and Trackball Optical – feature Microsoft’s proprietary IntelliEye(tm) optical tracking technology. This optical technology provides a more accurate and reliable mousing experience while the ergonomic design makes these mouse products comfortable and stylish.
The Mac-compatible keyboards – the ergonomic Natural(r) Keyboard Pro and the traditional flat-design Internet Keyboard Pro – feature 19 time-saving hot keys that make it easier to access the Internet, e-mail, multimedia and more. Further, two integrated Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports make swapping input devices such as joysticks, game pads and mouse products a snap.
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.
Microsoft, Outlook, Windows, IntelliMouse, IntelliEye and Natural are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Apple, Mac and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Computer Inc.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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