Microsoft Exchange 2010

BERLIN, Nov. 9 / Today at the Microsoft Tech-Ed Europe 2009 conference in Germany, Microsoft Business Division President Stephen Elop announced that Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 is now available worldwide to help businesses reduce costs, protect communications and delight e-mail users. Along with Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2, Exchange Server 2010 is part of a generation of solutions designed for increased business productivity and cost savings.

In today’s challenging economic environment, innovative use of new information technologies can result in improved operational efficiency and reduced costs. The combination of cost savings coupled with improved productivity and innovation is defined as “the New Efficiency.”

Elop also announced the release of Forefront Protection 2010 for Exchange Server, which helps Exchange Server customers further safeguard business information.

“Exchange Server 2010 customers are already reporting cost savings of up to 70 percent thanks to a simplified high-availability model and support for lower-cost storage. Customers are also seeing productivity gains of more than 20 percent with a universal inbox that delivers e-mail, voice mail, instant messaging and text messaging consistently across virtually any device,” Elop said. “Together with Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2, the combined cost savings and improved productivity helps customers generate long-term business success.”

According to a commissioned study of technology early adopters conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Microsoft Corp., a customer can see a payback period of less than six months when upgrading to either Exchange Server 2010* or Windows Server 2008 R2.**

Customers such as Bank of America Corp., Carnival Cruise Line, Global Crossing, Lifetime Products, Morgan Keegan & Co. Inc., NEC Philips, Subaru Canada Inc. and Telekom Austria Group are deploying Exchange Server 2010 and report impressive results with the new server.

“We have increased storage eightfold at 25 percent of the cost with Exchange Server 2010 and our employees are seeing a reduction of unwanted e-mail by more than 70 percent, freeing us up to focus on more important client issues,” said Steve Derbyshire, operations director, NEC Philips.

Organizations including Automatic Data Processing Inc., BMW, Baker Tilly, the City of Miami, Energizer, Getronics and Pella Corp. are deploying Windows 7 and report gains in efficiency for both business users and IT. Customers report improved user productivity and easier information access, reduced costs with streamlined management, and reduced risk through better security and increased desktop control. Supporting detail is available in recent total cost of ownership studies and analyst survey reports at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/enterprise/products/windows-7/default.aspx.

Businesses are seeing equally significant results from Windows Server 2008 R2, with customers including Continental Airlines Inc. (U.S.), Chester Zoo (U.K.), Combell Group NV (Belgium), FinPro (Finland), Wacom Europe GmbH (Germany) and Wortell (Netherlands) noting cost savings through server consolidation, reduced power consumption and improved service levels.

“With Windows Server 2008 R2, we’ve been able to dramatically reduce costs in our IT infrastructure while simplifying management,” said Phil Morris, IT manager, North England Zoological Society/Chester Zoo. “By virtualizing our environment with Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V, we have reduced the number of servers in our environment by 80 percent while maintaining the high availability our retail staff, researchers and management team need.”

“Windows Server 2008 R2 brings many efficiencies to our customers, including enabling new virtualization scenarios,” said Bill Laing, corporate vice president for the Windows Server and Solutions Division at Microsoft. “We’ve added the next generation of hypervisor and the new ability to perform Live Migration of virtual machines. Many customers are already seeing tangible results since deploying Windows Server 2008 R2 with Hyper-V.”

Elop said more than 45,000 partners are trained on Windows Server 2008 R2 and Exchange Server 2010, with several partners announcing new services and solutions today, including Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Avanade, Dell Inc., EMC Corp., Kaspersky Lab, Symantec Corp. and Unisys Corp.

Exchange Server 2010 and Forefront Protection 2010 for Exchange are available now for trial at http://www.thenewefficiency.com, along with more information about Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2 and partner solutions.

Ongoing Commitment to Developers and IT Professionals
As part of Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to providing developers and IT professionals with the technology to drive productivity gains within their organizations, the following announcements also were also made today at Tech-Ed Europe 2009.

• The community technology preview for SQL Server 2008 R2 will be available for download at http://www.microsoft.com/sqlserver/2008/en/us/R2.aspx.
• For use in building multilanguage Web sites and client applications, Microsoft Translator widgets and APIs are now in beta. Many European languages are now supported by Microsoft Translator. Additional details can be found at http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=9694254.
• Microsoft’s Trustworthy Computing Group will release new guidance that extends the full Security Development Lifecycle process to a wider external software developer audience, by enabling developers using the Agile development model to integrate Microsoft’s SDL processes, tools and technologies directly into their software development environments, helping to ensure their applications are secure and their customers have a safer, more trusted computing experience.

Virtual Tech-Ed Europe Participation
There are multiple ways for those not in attendance to experience Tech-Ed Europe 2009.

• Visit the Tech-Ed global pressroom at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/events/teched/default.mspx for additional details regarding all announcements made at Tech-Ed Europe 2009.
• View the live stream of the executive keynote address from the Tech-Ed 2009 global pressroom today at 3:30 p.m. CET/6:30 a.m. PST.
• Participate in the post-keynote webcast Q&A today at 5 p.m. CET/8 a.m. PST, immediately following the executive keynote address. Submit questions to the executive panel by visiting the Tech-Ed global pressroom.

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

* Source: Forrester Consulting: “The Total Economic Impact of Microsoft Exchange 2010,” November 2009.
** Source: Forrester Consulting: “The Total Economic Impact of Windows Server 2008 R2,” November 2009.

This information is about pre-release software and therefore is subject to change. It is provided without warranty of any kind, express or implied

In today’s data-centric environment, the need for streamlining to achieve benefits such as cost-savings and greater security has never been more paramount for the enterprise.

Mumbai – one of the most populated cities in the world with increasing traffic as the financial center of India – accommodates millions of travelers every year. The Airports Authority of India recently mandated modernization of the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, India’s busiest airport. MIAL directs the expansion and improvement of CSIA infrastructure to accommodate nearly double its existing capacity, eventually serving 40 million passengers and handling one million tons of cargo per year.

According to airport officials, initial upgrades focused on training employees and refurbishing areas of passenger convenience, such as terminal entrances and passenger lounges. More recent developments include additional taxiways, a multi-level car park at the international terminal, and resurfaced runways. Managing multiple projects across an airport that employs hundreds of people and spans an operational area of 1,450 acres demands swift and secure communication.

“MIAL employees send and receive hundreds of faxes every month to and from vendors and government agencies. And, many faxes require signature,” said Pankaj Srivastava, manager of information technology for the MIAL project management office. “Incoming faxes are more important,” he continues. “We have emergency faxes coming to the airport control center or from various consulates regarding regulations or VIP passengers. For those, fast turnaround and security is needed.”

The airport relied on close to 50 fax machines that required consistent and costly maintenance as well as constant supply refills – what’s more, sensitive documents were not private or secure.

MIAL officials said the airport has eliminated fax machine queues and gained reliable security for all faxed documents with Open Text Fax Server, RightFax Edition, which creates a unified fax and e-mail solution. The Open Text Fax Server Connector for Microsoft (News – Alert) Exchange is an add-on to fax server, acting as a communication link between the fax server and exchange server.

Instead of printing pages to feed through fax machines, employees can fax documents from any Microsoft application right at their desktop computers. Integration with Microsoft Exchange allows users to select recipients from their Microsoft Outlook address books. In addition, senior managers or their secretaries can receive documents via individually assigned direct inward dial – or DID – numbers.

The airport’s senior managers use smartphones, so even when they’re traveling, they can receive an email as soon as a fax arrives, according to Open Text officials. They can see faxes via a PDF viewer and forward them directly from the wireless device.

MIAL estimates saving hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars per month with Fax Server. The company also expects to eliminate close to 40 fax machines, with the remainder as backup devices in case of email failure.

“Our staff members have increased efficiency because we have optimized their time. I don’t see anyone standing around fax machines nowadays. If someone is standing by a machine, I wonder, ‘What are you doing there?’ That non-productive time is now used for a better purpose,” said Srivastava.

Today, Ontario-based Open Text supports more than 20,000 active fax server production systems. Thousands of Open Text users have realized “hard cost savings through the displacement of traditional fax and document management infrastructure,” company officials said.

important links:

• http://faxsolutions.opentext.com/exchange.aspx
• http://www.microsoft.com/exchange/2010/en/us/default.aspx
• http://www.tmcnet.com/channels/enterprise-fax-over-ip/articles/68447-enterprise-fax-over-ip-mumbai-international-airport-integrates.htm

Microsoft launches Online Services to provide on-demand e-mail and collaboration solutions for customers in India Microsoft Online Services Subscription is available upwards of $2 per user per month.

The Microsoft Online Services product family offers Exchange Online (for e-mail) and Office SharePoint Online (portals and collaboration) available separately or as a suite together with Office Live Meeting (for conferencing), Microsoft Exchange Hosted Services and Microsoft Office Communications Online (for instant messaging and presence). The services will be available in India from November 7, 2009 onwards.

HCL, Infosys, Wipro among leading partners to provide value added Services Over 1800 Indian businesses on board in the 100 day trial period . As a part of its continued emphasis to enable easy access to its cost effective business productivity software, Microsoft has announced commercial availability of Microsoft Online Services in India.

Customers can access the suite directly from www.microsoft.com/india/onlineservices

Users have to pay a use-based monthly subscription fee, and thus manage their IT needs efficiently and more cost effectively .

Windows 7 delivers on a simple premise: Microsoft Online Services Ready Reckoner

Microsoft Online Services delivers:

E-mail, collaborate, conference, IM facility online on a pay as you go basis
Website from where you can access:
http://www.microsoft.com/india/onlineservices

Costs: (excluding applicable taxes)

The standard suite costs $10 /user/month
Individual offerings are available at:

• $5 per user/month for Exchange Online Sstd
• $5.25 user/month for SharePoint Online
• $2.00 user/month for Office Communications Online Std
• $4.50 user/month for Office Live Meeting
• $2 per user/month for Exchange Online Deskless Worker
• $2 per user/month for SharePoint Online Deskless Worker

Microsoft Online Services:6 easy cost saving steps

• Step 1 – Go to www.microsoft.com/india/onlineservices
• Step 2 – Choose country and log in with Live id
• Step 3 – Add chosen services to shopping cart
• Step 4 – Choose the partner of choice
• Step 5 – Start using the service (after you receive service setup notification)
• Step 6 – A usage based monthly bill will be make it easier for customers to do the things they want on a PC through a streamlined user interface and several new features that make everyday tasks faster. This launch marks a significant milestone for Microsoft and is a result of extensive feedback from millions of customers and partners around the world.