Microsoft and Reuters to Connect 50,000 Financial Professionals Via the MSN Messenger Connect for Enterprises Service

REDMOND, Wash., Sept. 30, 2003 — Microsoft Corp., the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing, and Reuters, the global information company, today announced an agreement for Reuters to develop secure, streamlined access between Reuters Messaging (based on Microsoft® Office Live Communications Server technologies) and the Microsoft Messenger network via the MSN®
Messenger Connect for Enterprises service. MSN Messenger Connect helps companies add logging, auditing and identity-management features to instant messaging (IM) sessions conducted on the Messenger network. This new version of the Reuters Messaging service is scheduled to launch in the first quarter of 2004.

Agreement the Result of Long-Standing Relationship Between Microsoft and Reuters

This milestone is the result of years of strong collaboration between Microsoft and Reuters and signifies both companies’ ongoing commitment to bringing world-class communication solutions and information to the financial community. The goal of this project, which was originally announced by Microsoft and Reuters in November 2002, is to reach secure server-to-server connectivity between the two instant messaging service providers.

“We are pleased to be teaming with Reuters on this new service,” said Blake Irving, corporate vice president at MSN. “Once it is completed, MSN users worldwide will have access to leading financial professionals through a world-class, end-to-end and regulatory-compliant system from Reuters.”

Solution Provides Enhanced Security, Control and Ease of Use

Reuters will enhance its secure messaging network for financial professionals by allowing controlled communication with more than 100 million users of the Microsoft instant messaging service. The enhanced Reuters Messaging service, which has more than 50,000 active users a week, will allow financial professionals to interact with users of MSN while using one corporate-controlled identity to log on seamlessly to both networks. The new service will deliver critical management features for IM sessions conducted on the Messenger network, logging the sessions to a Microsoft SQL Server (TM) database for easy auditing and allowing businesses to own and manage their corporate IM identities throughout the entire system. These features help companies protect proprietary information, such as contact lists, and comply with key industry regulations while enjoying a key benefit of instant messaging: receiving the right information from the right individual at the right time.

New Reuters Service Is Milestone in Microsoft’s Enterprise Instant Messaging Strategy

As a result of Microsoft’s experience in both consumer services and enterprise software, Reuters was able to create the Reuters Messaging Network, which is based on Microsoft Office Live Communications Server technologies, and extend it to MSN.

“Pioneered together with Microsoft, Reuters Messaging is building the global reach infrastructure to satisfy that growing need of secure and compliant communications based on Live Communications Server technologies,” said David Gurle, executive vice president and global head of collaboration services at Reuters. “Connectivity with MSN, a world leader in consumer communication services, is a key step forward for our subscribers.”

Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2003 is an enterprise real-time communications server that provides an extensible platform to deliver presence capabilities and instant messaging to connect people, information and business processes so that employees can make better decisions faster. Combined with MSN Messenger Connect for Enterprises, which extends enterprise instant messaging capabilities to the vast number of MSN Messenger users, no other software provider delivers a more powerful, complete and integrated instant messaging offering for businesses. More information on MSN Connect or the Live Communications Server can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/net/services/msnmc/.

About Reuters

Reuters ( http://www.about.reuters.com/ ), the global information company, provides indispensable information tailored for professionals in the financial services, media and corporate markets. Our information is trusted and drives decision making across the globe based on our reputation for speed, accuracy and independence. We have 16,000 staff in 94 countries, including some 2,400 editorial staff in 197 bureaux serving approximately 130 countries, making Reuters the world’s largest international multimedia news agency. In 2002, the Reuters Group had revenues of 3.6 billion.

About MSN

MSN attracts more than 350 million unique users worldwide per month. With localized versions available globally in 34 markets and 18 languages, MSN is a world leader in delivering Web services to consumers and ad sales to businesses worldwide. MSN 8 is the first Internet software product to have earned the trusted Good Housekeeping Seal. The most useful and innovative online service today, MSN brings consumers everything they need from the Web to make the most of their time online. MSN is located on the Web at http://www.msn.com/. MSN worldwide sites are located at http://www.msn.com/worldwide.ashx.

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 and MSN are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.Reuters and the sphere logo are the trademarks of the Reuters group of companies.

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. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.asp.

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