Microsoft today announced plans to introduce a South African MSN portal site, the announcement is part of an MSN expansion plan that will place the service in 22 countries, making MSN the most widely distributed portal brand in the world.
The increased online presence will more than quadruple Microsoft`s present international distribution, with 31 separate countries providing local content for over 90% of the world`s online population. The new portals will roll out across Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America before the end of the year. Microsoft currently has portals in seven countries: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
When the South African portal goes live before the end of the year, South Africans will gain a completely customisable entrance onto the Internet, complete with core MSN services and local content.
MSN South Africa will use the technology framework found at www.msn.com to deliver local content and services. Customisable content, available when the site launches this year, will initially include content from M-Web, Iafrica.com, WOZA and Worldsports. Localised versions of popular MSN services like MSN Web Search, MSN Hotmail, MSN Web Communities and MSN Messenger Service, the Microsoft instant messaging product, will become available in the first half of 1999.
"Microsoft`s commitment to launching MSN South Africa is a direct reflection on the maturity of the South African Internet community and their adoption of a Web lifestyle," said Mark Hill, managing director of Microsoft South Africa.
"Portal sites are gaining momentum as invaluable online resources for organising the Web - MSN South Africa will give South Africans a more relevant Internet experience, helping us to get things done online more easily."
For South Africans this means more relevant and easily accessed information via the site, which will be found at www.msn.co.za . Microsoft`s aim is to provide content partners with opportunities for a greater number of hits, as well as give Web users greater and better access to a variety of local information and news.
"The Web Lifestyle is becoming a reality all over the world, and Microsoft is committed to making a global investment that will help users organise the Web around people, interests and services that are important to them," said Calum Russell, Internet Customer Unit Manager at Microsoft SA. "Our goal with MSN is to help people get things done online wherever they are."
Robin Parker, marketing director of Iafrica.com, said: "Our philosophy has always been that as a southern African content provider we should be as active as possible in promoting our service. The opportunity to partner with similarly minded companies with a potentially larger footprint than ours offers up a marvellous opportunity to expand the area of influence of our offerings. The history of our relationship across the Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 channels and the success of the other relationships we enjoy with Microsoft, means an extension into the Microsoft portal was a natural one. We are sure that the chosen combination of content and the marketing approach will benefit both of
us."
WOZA, too, believes the project will be a success. Kevin Davie, marketing manager at WOZA said: "This a great marriage of technology and content from Microsoft. It makes it easier than ever for users to find and use information relevant to them. For WOZA this is an exciting opportunity and we believe the benefits will be huge."
According to Worldsports sports editor, Kerry Muldoon, the site offers tremendous opportunity: "We are big on content and it is important to have partners that are of a stature such as Microsoft. A recent Gartner Group report called Portals `the TV channels of the future` and we firmly believe this. Worldsports is proud to be a part of this project."
M-Web will also provide a variety of content for the local portal. Bruce Cohen, General Manager, M-Web Interactive commented: "M-Web is probably the largest distributer of Microsoft Internet Explorer Browser in the Southern Hemishpere and we believe that an on-line world is an interconected world - via partnerships, alliances and networking. For us, it makes strategic sense that M-Web`s content finds a home in a larger global environment."
The following markets and languages comprise this expansion initiative:
Countries:
Argentina
Austria
Belgium
Brazil
Chile
China
Hong Kong
Taiwan
Colombia
Denmark
Finland
Italy
Korea (North and South)
Malaysia
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Peru
Singapore
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Languages:
Chinese - (simplified)
Chinese - (traditional)
Danish
Dutch
English
French
Finnish
German
Italian
Korean
Norwegian
Portuguese (Brazilian)
Spanish
Swedish
Additional markets will be added in the future as Internet communities mature and begin to reflect adoption of Web Lifestyle characteristics. Note to editors: Founded in 1975, Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day. Microsoft South Africa was launched in January 1993 in Johannesburg and now has sales offices in Durban and Cape Town.
If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at www.microsoft.com and the Microsoft South Africa home page at http://www.microsoft.com/southafrica/.
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