HANOVER, Germany, March 2 /PRNewswire/ --

- Microsoft signs agreement with GlaxoSmithKline to deploy Exchange 
Online, SharePoint Online, Office Communications Online and Office Live 
Meeting for employees worldwide.

Furthering its commitment to deliver communications and collaboration
software as enterprise-class services, today at CeBIT 2009 Microsoft Corp.
announced that the Business Productivity Online Suite, part of Microsoft
Online Services, is now available for trial to businesses of all sizes in 19
countries. In addition, Microsoft will release Microsoft Office
Communications Online, for instant messaging and presence, and the Business
Productivity Online Deskless Worker Suite, an extremely economical e-mail,
calendaring and collaboration service for the occasional user.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO)

"These services open up new possibilities for businesses to control costs
while continuing to enhance the productivity of their employees," said
Stephen Elop, president of the Microsoft Business Division. "Customers can
save between 10 percent and 50 percent in IT-related expenditures as a result
of deploying Microsoft Online Services."

Software-Plus-Services Strategy Reaches Worldwide

Exchange Online and SharePoint Online are available for trial in Austria,
Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan,
Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the
United Kingdom and the United States. Organizations worldwide will be able to
trial and purchase the entire Business Productivity Online Suite, including
Office Communications Online, in April.

In addition, Microsoft is committed to providing opportunity for a global
ecosystem of partners that will sell, customize and provide consulting,
migration and managed services for Microsoft Online Services customers around
the world.

Solutions for Occasional Users

The Deskless Worker Suite, including Exchange Online Deskless Worker and
SharePoint Online Deskless Worker, will also be available to organizations in
the 19 countries. The Deskless Worker Suite is a low-cost solution designed
for users who don't have access to messaging and collaboration capabilities
today.

The worldwide availability of the Deskless Worker Suite will offer
customers an affordable e-mail and collaboration solution for occasional
users. By providing a cost-effective subscription rate (currently listed at
2.56 euros or 2.01 pounds per month per user), the Deskless Worker Suite will
make it possible for organizations to give all employees access to the same
messaging and collaboration systems. Today, in organizations that have
deployed e-mail, more than 40 percent of employees do not have e-mail.*

The Deskless Worker Suite will be available for trial and for purchase
worldwide in April.

Global Customer Adoption

A growing number of companies across the globe, from small businesses to
large enterprises, are already adopting Microsoft Online Services, which were
first released in the U.S. last fall. Today, Microsoft announced that
pharmaceutical multinational GlaxoSmithKline will deploy the Business
Productivity Online Suite, including Exchange Online, SharePoint Online,
Office Communications Online, Office Live Meeting and the Deskless Worker
Suite, to its employees worldwide.

"GlaxoSmithKline has more than 100,000 employees, hundreds of business
partners, and locations around the world, so effective collaboration is
critical to our business," said Bill Louv, chief information officer,
GlaxoSmithKline. "We have chosen Microsoft Online Services because it
promises to deliver a simple intuitive Information Workplace that should not
only value to the company through simplification, but provide an improved
user experience and ultimately create a more productive GSK."

"The move to Microsoft Online Services will help GlaxoSmithKline cut
operational costs by an estimated 30 percent and create a variable cost model
that will provide increased flexibility in the future," said Ingo Elfering,
vice president of Information Technology Strategy, GlaxoSmithKline.

An executive Q&A video with GlaxoSmithKline's CIO is available at
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/presskits/Officesoftwareplusservices/defau
lt.mspx.

A GlaxoSmithKline executive blog is available on the Microsoft Online
Services team blog at http://blogs.technet.com/msonline/default.aspx.

Worldwide Pricing Model

Worldwide pricing for Microsoft Online Services is flexible and
predictable. Businesses will have the option to subscribe to Exchange Online,
SharePoint Online, Office Communications Online and Office Live Meeting
individually or together as a suite. The Business Productivity Online Suite
is currently listed at 12.78 euros or 10.04 pounds per month per user, which
offers businesses a 38 percent discount, compared with subscribing separately
to the individual services.

Additional information on Microsoft Online Services is available at
http://www.microsoft.com/online.

About Microsoft Online Services

Microsoft Online Services are enterprise-class communications and
collaboration software delivered as subscription services to businesses of
all sizes, hosted by Microsoft and sold with partners. The offering, designed
for customers with managed IT needs, includes Microsoft Exchange Online with
Microsoft Exchange Hosted Filtering, Microsoft SharePoint Online, Microsoft
Office Communications Online, Microsoft Office Live Meeting and Microsoft
Dynamics CRM Online.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is the worldwide leader in
software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize
their full potential.

* According to Ipsos MediaCT. Information collected from Canada, France,
Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.