MSFT: Microsoft and Intel Help System Builders Get Ready for Windows Vista, the 2007 Microsoft Office System and Intel Core 2 Duo Processors

Microsoft Corp. and Intel Corporation announced the Ready 2 Rock Road Show, a series of day-long, hands-on events designed to prepare the system builder channel to make the most of the myriad business opportunities offered by new and innovative products and technologies from Microsoft and Intel. The road show, to be held in 23 cities across the U.S. and Canada, is designed to help system builders be more competitive in the marketplace by providing the training and technical content they need to build and sell customized solutions based on the most powerful Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processors, the Microsoft® Windows Vista™ operating system, the 2007 Microsoft Office system, and Intel and Microsoft server products. (Office server products are included in the 2007 Microsoft Office system.)

In a single day, attendees will receive technical readiness training on new Intel and Microsoft products, including Windows Vista, Intel Core 2 Duo processors, Intel vPro™ technology, the 2007 Microsoft Office system, and Intel and Microsoft server products. They will also receive instruction on the unique features and benefits of each edition of Windows Vista, learn how to advise business and consumer customers on which edition of Windows Vista will best meet their needs, and have the opportunity to build a Windows Vista system on a Verified by Intel mobile platform. Attendees will also be taught how to use Intel vPro technology to deliver service value to their business clients and how Intel Core 2 Duo processor-based PCs deliver rich, new computing experiences. In addition, they will be given information about Intel and Microsoft system builder channel programs, marketing and sales tools; and a variety of alliance vendors offering complementary products will be available in the Showcase portion of the event.

“The upcoming availability of Windows Vista and the 2007 Office system, along with powerful processors and technology from Intel, offers tremendous business opportunities for our system builder and distributor partners,” said John Ball, general manager of the U.S. System Builder Partners Group at Microsoft. “We are committed to providing tools and resources that help system builders grow their businesses, and we are excited to be joining forces with Intel to provide training on these innovative products at the Ready 2 Rock Road Show.”

“The innovative new technologies that Intel and Microsoft are bringing to market provide a unique opportunity for our mutual system builder partners to create compelling solutions that deliver unprecedented value to their customers,” said Shirley Turner, Intel’s director of North America Channel Partner Marketing. “By coming together in this way, Intel and Microsoft can demonstrate, side by side, to our channel partners that we value their business and will continue our collective support to help them in their efforts to increase sales and drive new opportunities around Intel Core 2 Duo-based systems.”

The Ready 2 Rock Road Show is one component of Microsoft’s plan to train more than 80,000 system builder partners worldwide before the release of Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office system. For those who cannot attend a road show event, Microsoft is providing a number of additional training opportunities as part of the “Get Ready Your Way” campaign. Offerings include online training through the Microsoft Partner University and live training sessions offered at over 80 New Horizons locations nationwide. More information about “Get Ready Your Way” can be found at http://microsoft.com/oem/getready. Microsoft also continues to make significant investments in the system builder channel through innovative partner programs such as the Microsoft Partner Program, which includes the OEM Hardware Solutions Competency, through which partners can get the things they ask for most: technical support; software for internal use; and branding, marketing and sales materials. Other examples are the Buy Local campaign, Office Ready and the small-business customer campaign.

In addition to this unique joint training program, the Intel Channel Partner Program allows system builders and value-added resellers to access marketing resources, technical support and sales tools that help them deliver innovative technologies and services to their customers.

More information and event registration for the Ready to Rock Road Show can be found at http://www.intelmicrosoftr2r.com