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Microsoft
Opens New Online Store
Will Enable Users to Easily Obtain Products Online Via
Resellers; Starting March 8 Visitors Will Be Eligible to Win $500 Shopping Spree REDMOND, Wash. - Feb. 24, 1999 - Microsoft Corp. today
announced the debut of the company's first online store, located at http://shop.microsoft.com/.
The new store, open for business immediately, provides customers with a
centralized online location to obtain Microsoft® software and
hardware products and Microsoft Press® titles through participating
resellers. Store visitors are eligible every day between March 8 and May 31,
1999, to win a $500 shopping spree (no purchase necessary). Shop.microsoft.com provides consumers with comprehensive
product information and specifications regarding any Microsoft product sold in
the United States. Future versions of the store, beginning with one for Canada,
will be localized for specific countries and resellers. According to Jupiter Communications, Strategic Planning
Services research it conducted in December 1998 found that 35 percent of all
software sales will be transacted online by 2002, with 22 percent of the online
consumer population making at least one software acquisition via the
Internet by 2002. Jupiter also predicts the greatest number of online
transactions in 2002 will be primarily in the categories of music, books and PC
software. "Software is a favorite product category for online
consumers," said Steve Schiro, vice president of the consumer customer unit
at Microsoft. "The objective for the online store is to make sure our
customers can acquire Microsoft products when, where and how they want them.
Shop.microsoft.com also provides a unique opportunity for the channel by
enabling participating resellers to build buying relationships with the more
than 2 million customers that visit microsoft.com every day." When consumers on shop.microsoft.com decide to order a
product, they add the item to their virtual shopping basket by simply clicking
an order button. At checkout, they select one of the four participating
resellers to fulfill their order. Currently the participating resellers are
Beyond.com, CDW, CompUSA and Insight. Additional resellers will be included over
the next few months. Customers also have the option of ordering products directly
from Microsoft at the estimated retail price (ERP). ERP is generally 10 percent
to 25 percent higher than the "street price" used by resellers. When
customers choose to order through one of the participating resellers, their
shopping basket is conveniently transferred to the reseller's Web site. The
reseller then provides a total price for the basket of Microsoft products and
processes the order. "CDW is proud to collaborate with Microsoft in this new
online endeavor," said Jim Shanks, CIO of CDW. "We have enjoyed a
long-standing relationship with Microsoft focused on better servicing the needs
of customers. Bringing this project from the testing phase to the launch is
exciting for us and provides us with the opportunity for greater exposure in the
electronic commerce arena." In addition to helping participating resellers develop their
electronic-commerce efforts and strategies, shop.microsoft.com will also be used
as a showcase for Microsoft's electronic-commerce platform, which utilizes a
range of technologies that include the Windows NT® Server operating
system, Microsoft SQL Server™ 7.0, Commerce Server, Site Server and Internet
Information Server. Starting March 8 through May 31, 1999, visitors to the store
will be able to enter the shop.microsoft.com sweepstakes by filling out the
sweepstakes registration form linked to the store's home page. Each day of the
sweepstakes a random drawing will select the winner of a $500 shopping spree.
Winners will receive a gift certificate to the online store that can be applied
toward $500 worth of any Microsoft hardware or software product or Microsoft
Press title. In addition to the daily winners, the 100,000th customer to
register for the sweepstakes will win a $1,000 shopping spree. Copyright (C)
1998-1999 The Active Network. All rights reserved.
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