Microsoft Ships Internet Information Server 3.0

Makes Windows NT Server an Even Better Web Application Platform

New York - Dec. 10, 1996 - Microsoft Corp. this week will release Microsoft® Internet Information Server (IIS) version 3.0. Users of the Windows NT® Server network operating system version 4.0 will be able to download IIS 3.0 at no charge (except for connect-time charges, if any) from http://www.microsoft.com/iis/. IIS is a standard feature of Windows NT Server 4.0, ensuring tight integration between the Web server and the operating system.

Internet Information Server 3.0 introduces broad new functionality, making IIS an even stronger Web application platform. Active Server Pages enables rapid application development by allowing Web developers to combine HTML, scripting and components on the server. Microsoft Index Server 1.1 introduces hit highlighting and provides full-text searches and retrieval of documents in almost any file format. Microsoft NetShow delivers live and on-demand multimedia content over the Internet and corporate intranets. Using IP multicast and multimedia streaming on today's networks, NetShow offers customers new ways to enhance communications on an open, standards-based application platform.

"Customer requirements for Web servers are shifting dramatically as the Web server becomes an application platform," said Jim Allchin, senior vice president of the personal and business systems group at Microsoft. "Microsoft is uniquely able to address these requirements, as the combination of Windows NT Server with IIS 3.0, and Transaction Server provides a comprehensive platform for rapidly building robust, scalable server applications."

Customers Are Switching to IIS

Customers are switching to Microsoft Internet Information Server on the Internet. IIS has now moved ahead of Netscape products, becoming the most widely used commercial Web server on the Internet, according to Netcraft, a United Kingdom Internet consultancy (http://www.netcraft.com/survey/). More than 50,000 customers have downloaded the beta version of IIS 3.0 in the past six weeks. Customers are also switching to IIS for intranet solutions, replacing older, more limited technologies from competing Web server solutions. These customers include Consolidated Edison Co. of New York, Kmart, Lucent Technologies, Nissan Motor Corp., Safeco Corp., Taco Bell Corp. and Turner Broadcasting Systems Inc.

"We are migrating our public Web site from Netscape to Microsoft Internet Information Server as fast as we can," said David Britton, director of production, NBC Interactive. "With IIS, multiuser discussion groups, games, streaming audiovisual content and transaction processing all become easier, as well as less expensive, to develop and maintain. The combination of effective, integrated development environments, much lower-cost delivery platforms and state-of-the-art capability is hard to resist."

Microsoft Delivers Key Components of the Active Server

With the release of IIS 3.0 with Active Server Pages, Microsoft ships a key component of the Active Server. Other Active Server technologies include the Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM), Microsoft Transaction Server (formerly code-named "Viper") and message queue technology (currently code-named "Falcon").

Microsoft Active Server technologies make the development of server applications for the Internet and intranets faster and easier as they offer a unique language-independent approach that seperates business logic from display generation. Transaction processing technology is now shipping in Microsoft Transaction Server. The message queue technology is scheduled to be delivered in mid-1997.

Availability

Microsoft Internet Information Server version 3.0 will be available to download free this week at http://www.microsoft.com/iis/ (connect-time charges may apply). Customers can also order the Windows NT Service Pack 2, which includes IIS 3.0, direct from Microsoft Sales at (800) 426-9400 (shipping and handling charges apply).

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ "MSFT") 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, Windows NT and FrontPage are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

Java is a trademark of Sun Microsystems Inc.

Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ on Microsoft's corporate information pages.
 

Microsoft Internet Information Server 3.0 Fast Facts

Microsoft Internet Information Server 3.0 includes Active Server Pages, NetShow, Index Server 1.1, the Microsoft FrontPage™ 97 Web authoring and management tool, Server Extensions, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) 3.0, Seagate Software's Crystal Reports 4.5, the Java™ Virtual Machine, support for multiple default documents, and Virtual Directory Mapping with Windows Explorer.

Microsoft Internet Information Server has recently received many industry awards, including the following:

• PC Computing's Most Valuable Product award for Web servers, November 1996
• Windows NT Magazine's Editors Choice for Web servers, September 1996
• PC Magazine's Editor's Choice for intranet servers, June 1996
• Windows NT Server 4.0, with Internet Information Server 2.0, was awarded PC Computing's Product of the Year award at COMDEX/Fall '96

In addition, these companies are making use of IIS:

• ILX Systems Inc., the largest equities quote vendor in the United States, with over 90,000 workstations licensed, is now standardizing on IIS 3.0 and Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0 for customer solutions.
• Bridge Information Systems, a subsidiary of Global Financial Information Corp., is a global provider of real-time and historic financial information and news. Its workstation products have been licensed worldwide to more than 50,000 users. As part of its Internet strategy, Bridge has built a Web server using Microsoft Internet Information Server 3.0 and embedded Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0 in its workstation product.
• Customers using NetShow, the IIS 3.0 streaming media technology, to develop exciting multimedia Web sites for corporate intranets and the Internet include the following: Asia Connect (a Malaysian Internet service provider), Compaq Computer Corp., Copfer & Associates Inc., Cutler-Hammer, Digital Arts Consulting, divisions of Eaton Corp., Fawcette Technical Publications; Fine.com Interactive Corp., Florida Marlins, ImageMind Software Inc., NetGuide - CMP Media Inc., New Reach Communications Inc., Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp., Nomura Research Institute Ltd., Radio Data Group Inc., Swiss Connection Inc., Texas Humanities Resource Center, United Video Satellite Group Inc., Woodland Park Zoo and WorldLink Data Communications Inc.
• According to a survey of 220 organizations using Windows NT Server 4.0, 75 percent are deploying IIS (source: Attune Market Research Inc.).
• Without counting repeat or multiple visits, more than 350,000 users have visited the IIS 3.0 beta 2 Web site in the past six weeks