Hot Topics
October 28, 2009
Comment on Upcoming Changes to the Microsoft Partner Network (MPN) Portal Experience
A new Microsoft Partner Network (MPN) Portal experience is coming soon, and we’d like to hear your questions and comments about the changes! As Allison Watson mentioned during WPC 2009, all of us in the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Group are focused on enhancing the partner experience. We are working to significantly reduce the amount of time it takes to do business with Microsoft by simplifying your experience and connecting processes to create an easy to follow workflow. Now we are looking for your feedback.
Over the next few weeks, we'll be sharing more information on some of these important process changes to enhance your experience and we will provide live support with webinars and open hours where you can submit your questions and feedback directly to the product management team.
We invite you to post your questions and comments about the upcoming changes. How can we help you grow your business and be successful in the coming years? What are your goals for your business and how can the Microsoft Partner Network (MPN) Portal help you reach them?
You can give us your input in a variety of ways:
Post directly to this blog post | Post on Twitter and use the #MPN4U hashtag | Send us an Email
October 22, 2009
Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 are Here!
Now that Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 are available worldwide, you have the opportunity to explore new development, sales, and services opportunities for your business. Windows 7, the next-generation operating system from Microsoft offers a robust foundation for high-quality experiences across applications, services, PCs, and devices. Now is the time to learn about Windows 7, use it internally, and become a trusted resource for your customers.
The latest release of Windows Server 2008 R2 enables you to help your customers’ increase the reliability and flexibility of their server infrastructures. With new virtualization tools, Web resources, management enhancements, and Windows 7 integration, Windows Server 2008 R2 can help save time, reduce costs, and provide a platform for a dynamic and efficiently managed data center.
Windows 7 Partner Network Resources
Windows Server 2008 R2 Partner Network Resources
A message from Corporate Vice Presidents, Allison Watson and Tami Reller
October 21, 2009
Win 7 Video Contest: 7 Ways to Change the World
To celebrate the launch of Windows 7, we want to discover creative ways that a PC running Windows can help make a great impact in your community. Submit your video entry to the 7 Ways to Change the World online competition, and if you have one of the best 7 submissions you could win a new PC running Windows 7 and a $7,000 grant for your chosen NGO or nonprofit. We plan to share all the submissions online, providing a great resource for non profits and community organizations to find out how technology can help support their work. Learn More.
October 19, 2009
Public Beta for Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 and Microsoft Office 2010 in November
Today, at Microsoft’s SharePoint Conference, Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer announced that the public beta of Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 and Microsoft Office 2010 will become available in November, and revealed some of the new SharePoint Server 2010 capabilities for the first time.
“By taming the overflow of information across systems and technologies, SharePoint enables organizations to thrive,” Ballmer said. “SharePoint 2010 is the biggest and most important release of SharePoint to date. When paired with Microsoft Office 2010, SharePoint 2010 will transform efficiency by connecting workers across a single collaboration platform for business.”
SharePoint Server is one of the fastest-growing products in Microsoft’s history, with over $1.3 billion in revenue, representing over a 20 percent growth over the past year. According to IDC, Microsoft attained a significant share of the collaborative content workspace market in 2008, and had the highest growth rate among top vendors with its Microsoft Office SharePoint Server.1 Read article
1 Source: IDC: “Worldwide Collaborative Content Workspace 2009-2013 Forecast and 2008 Vendor Shares: A Case of Coalescing Submarkets,” Doc #219885 September 2009.
October 16, 2009
Join the Windows 7 Launch Event!
Be a part of Microsoft and Windows history. Tune in live to Microsoft PressPass on October 22, at 8:00 A.M., Pacific time, and join Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to celebrate the worldwide availability of Windows 7. Can’t make it? You can join the fun later, on demand.
October 16, 2009
“Ask the NTO” on Voices for Innovation
"Ask the NTO", a new feature on the Voices of Innovation (VFI) website, gives VFI members the chance to ask Microsoft National Technology Officers (NTOs) questions about working with the public sector and building their business. Stuart McKee, Microsoft’s National Technology Officer, kicks-off the feature this month by raising the question, “What is happening with stimulus programs?”
If you have a question, hit a roadblock, or want to bounce an idea off Stuart, you can “Ask the NTO” by emailing info@voicesforinnovation.org
October 13, 2009
Microsoft Hosting University Now Accepting New Students
Choose from three lesson plans—Build, Manage, or Scale—and explore the curriculum of training courses and study materials. Learn about adopting and deploying the Windows hosting platform and management tools, and how you can get the tools to build your website. Learn More.
October 6, 2009
Hold Your Own Launch Event
The joint launch of the Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 operating systems, and Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 offers new opportunities for you to generate leads and drive business. Plan and host more-effective customer events with the customer presentations, demos, and other resources you’ll find in the Microsoft New Efficiency campaign launch event-in-a-box. Learn more.
October 6, 2009
IDC Study Finds Microsoft Partners Play Key Role in Economic Recovery
IDC has just released the report titled “Aid to Recovery: The Economic Impact of IT, Software, and the Microsoft Ecosystem on the Global Economy.” This study found that companies that partner with Microsoft play a key role in driving the IT industry's overall contribution to job growth and economic development. In 2009, Microsoft partners will have revenues of more than $535 billion and, by the end of 2009, will invest nearly $180 billion in local economies. What’s more, for every unit of revenue – dollar, euro, peso, etc. – that Microsoft will earn in 2009, partners will earn 8.70. That’s a multiplier that will create jobs and opportunities needed to renew the economy and our local communities. Learn more.
