Office 365 Now Available

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NEW YORK – June 28, 2011 – Steve Ballmer launched Office 365 today in New York City, for small businesses and enterprises. Small businesses are fast becoming the heroes of economic recovery, aided by new technologies such as cloud computing. “Small and midsize businesses are the heartbeat of the global economy, employing half the world’s workers and inventing new ways of doing business,” says Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. “The cloud makes it possible for small and midsize businesses to access big business technology in ways that were unimaginable just a few years ago, allowing them to leap forward and help propel the economic recovery.”

With Office 365, people can come together from anywhere and work together more easily, meeting face-to-face online, sharing work in real time, and accessing email and calendars on virtually any device. Smaller businesses can create and maintain a custom website, manage data and stay in control of sensitive information – even without any IT expense.

The worldwide availability of Office 365 marks the moment when small and midsize businesses don’t have to settle for ‘good enough’ productivity and collaboration technology, or struggle to maintain professional IT infrastructure. Watch the announcement on-demand.

Here are key actions to take advantage of the Office 365 momentum:

§ Deliver productivity from the cloud with Microsoft Office 365 30-Day TrialMaintaining competitive advantage requires that your customers be productive from the office, at home, and in the field, on virtually any device. Microsoft Office 365 can help you fulfill this demand for businesses of all sizes. Sign up for the beta today to be among the first to try this groundbreaking services offering, and discover how Office 365 can help you reach new customers and develop new revenue streams. Learn more

§ Utilize the Office 365 Ready-to-Go Marketing CampaignThis Ready-to-Go Marketing Campaign, a free benefit of your Microsoft Partner Network membership, includes Office 365 GA launch materials. We’ve assembled a set of event resources to enable you to host your own Office 365 customer launch events; including training links, customer PPTs, invitation email, handouts, and even PR guidance that includes suggested social media usage. Learn more

§ Introducing the Office 365 US Web Experience
Explore and discover the benefits of Office 365 through the lens of customers, partners and influencers on the MyOffice365 US Web Experience microsite – www.microsoft.com/myoffice365. This unique experience brings Office 365 to life and answers WHY our audience should consider it, illustrated through storytelling, testimonials and social buzz. Designed to be immersive, exploratory and engaging, this site provides compelling “reasons to believe” with the goal of converting interest to Try or Buy. Learn more.

§ Review the Partner Frequency Asked Questions for Office 365 GAAccess the Microsoft Partner – Office 365 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document updated for Office 365 General Availability on June 28. This updated FAQ includes information about the Office 365 Beta, Internal Usage Rights (IUR) benefit, BPOS to Office 365 transition, Partner of Record, licensing and more. Learn more.

§ Participate in Cloud Essentials or Cloud AccelerateAccelerate the growth of your business by building or selling cloud solutions based on innovative Microsoft technologies. Through Microsoft cloud solutions, you can give existing customers and new prospects access to the applications they know and trust—without requiring capital expenses or additional human resources. Begin by subscribing to the Microsoft Cloud Essential Pack. After signing up, you’ll be equipped with the technical and business support you need to drive new levels of profitability and competitive advantage. Learn more.

Use Office 365 Marketplace to Help Your Customers Find Your ServicesThe Microsoft Office 365 Marketplace is specifically designed to help partners the opportunity to showcase how their applications or services extend or enrich Microsoft Office 365 technologies. Partners who service and deploy on Office 365 are invited to create a new profile in the Office 365 Marketplace to attract new customer prospects. Learn More.

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