Microsoft's Largest Ever Enterprise Product Launch Brings Together Singapore IT Industry Heroes

Over 1500 IT professionals expected to attend and learn how early adopter customers and partners in Singapore have experienced the benefit of the most secure enterprise platform ever

Singapore today joined a roster of more than two hundred cities across the globe that have launched the latest wave of Microsoft enterprise products - Windows Server 2008, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 and Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 – thereby ushering in the next generation of solutions focused on driving value for businesses through enhanced capabilities in security, Web, Virtualization and business intelligence.

Themed 'Heroes Happen Here', today's launch event is in recognition of the outstanding work IT professionals, developers and partners such as Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Sun Microsystems, Avanade, Cisco, Citrix, IBM and Quest Software in Singapore do every day to create solutions and cutting-edge applications that keep businesses and industry running. Excitement from members of the local ecosystem has already been clearly demonstrated by the attendance of over 500 participants at an unveiling of the Server technologies for partners in February. In addition, over 1000 partner staff have been trained by Microsoft to ensure availability of technical expertise and to provide an optimal experience for customers.

Early adopters of Windows Server 2008 in Singapore include the Land Transport Authority of Singapore (LTA) and Virtual Map. These companies are just a sample of the more than 3 million customers worldwide that participated in early feedback programs or as beta testers during product development.

The launch represents a major milestone to help customers on the road to Dynamic IT, Microsoft's initiative to help customers optimize their people, processes and technology, and in turn position IT as a strategic asset for their business. "Enterprises in Singapore are constantly looking to drive competitive advantage and differentiate themselves," commented Microsoft Singapore General Manager Barney Lau. "These new enterprise products can help customers more efficiently and securely manage their entire infrastructure and move to a Virtualized environment while also delivering business intelligence and next-generation Web experiences to boost business results."

Big Benefits for Early Adopters

Researchers at consulting agency Capgemini looked at companies and institutions in the financial services, education, retail and high-technology industries using Windows Server 2008 in a mix of geographic regions. They found that the new operating system quickly adds value to IT operations through enhancements to management, security and reliability. On average, deployment duration was reduced by up to 60 percent and IT reduced costs by up to US$124, 000 per year. Cost reductions resulted from a wide range of areas, including the recovery of five IT staff hours per server and 91 percent less downtime.

Virtual Map is one such early adopter. According to Eugene Lim, Business Development Director, Virtual Map, the company found that with Windows Server 2008, it was able to achieve improved performance, better systems management, greater ease of remote ; administration, minimal installation and enhanced security for its web applications written in PHP.

Virtual Map is currently migrating its corporate applications to the Windows Server 2008 platform. "The benefits of Windows Server 2008 provided perfect solutions to the problems that we faced," Mr. Lim added. "We are confident that our existing applications will run on the new Microsoft platform at lower operational costs than before and allow us to better meet the needs of our clients."

Microsoft pays tribute to Singapore IT community

The Singapore 'Heroes Happen Here' launch featured sessions from Microsoft, industry partners and local customers. Microsoft also took the opportunity to honour the dedication and hard work of developers, users, administrators, and other IT professionals who are Singapore's unsung IT Heroes. Four outstanding members of Singapore's IT community have been specially nominated and recognized by Microsoft Singapore to be a part of the company's global initiative recognizing the commitment of top IT individuals across the world. They are Rosina Howe-Teo, Chief Innovation Officer, LTA; Pom Figueroa, Consultant Trainer and Systems Administrator, Avantus Training; Lee Lup Yuen, Principal Consultant, NCS Group and Julius Joseph, Lead Systems Analyst, Changi General Hospital. These Heroes have been featured in a compilation of stories about the challenges, journeys and achievements of IT professionals worldwide.

Across the globe, Microsoft has worked with more than 1,000 industry partners to help plan, build, test and deploy leading-edge solutions by providing early access to code, training and testing, and certification support. In Singapore more than 52 Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) and Value Added Resellers (VARS) including Gurusoft, Protégé, Teng IT, Duration and Advanced Interactive Technologies have demonstrated their support with the development of a wide variety of business applications for industries that include retail, manufacturing, financial services, supply chain logistics, real estate, and more.

Highlighting the opportunity for industry partners, a 2007 IDC study* predicts that for every US$1 Microsoft earns from Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 this year in the U.S., the ecosystem beyond Microsoft — software and hardware vendors that support or incorporate the products — will reap about US$18 in revenue. In 2008, this ecosystem is predicted to sell more than $120 billion in products and services revolving around Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008.

Product Availability and Information

Windows Server 2008, including a beta version of the Hyper-V Virtualization technology, and Visual Studio 2008 are available today. The feature-complete, February community technology preview of SQL Server 2008 is also available, with general availability expected in the third quarter of 2008.

Additional information on the Singapore launch of Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008 and Visual Studio 2008 is available at http://www.microsoft.com/singapore/heroeshappenhere/default.mspx.