DMA Names Microsoft-MSN 2007 Marketer of the Year

October 16, 2007 — Microsoft-MSN thought outside of the box when it created advertising platform Microsoft adCenter and produced the critically acclaimed Live Earth project, which integrated television, radio, Internet, and audiences to bring a live concert to the world while raising awareness about global warming. The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) today honored those achievements, presenting Microsoft-MSN with DMA’s 2007 Marketer of the Year Award.

DMA’s Marketer of the Year Award ceremony took place today at 10 a.m. in the Skyline Ballroom at McCormick Place West in Chicago. The ceremony came in the midst of the DMA07 Conference & Exhibition, the six-day multichannel marketing event of the year, which concludes Thursday.

The award was accepted by Reed Price, editor in chief of MSN Video and Entertainment, and Jerry Hayek, Microsoft group marketing manager.

In presenting the award, DMA President & CEO John A. Greco, Jr. said that dozens of companies, nonprofit organizations, and individuals had been nominated for the 2007 honor. A distinguished advisory panel composed of DMA members then helped to select this year’s award winner.

“Microsoft-MSN is DMA’s 2007 Marketer of the Year because it consistently demonstrates thought leadership, market innovation, and exemplary corporate responsibility,” Greco said. “It addresses both sides of the marketing equation — consumer and business-to-business — while retaining user-friendly and practical approaches that deliver winning results. In short, Microsoft-MSN upholds the DMA tenants of delivering relevance, being responsible, and producing measurable results. Certainly, all of that was rather spectacularly evidenced with the multichannel Live Earth event this past July.”

What made Live Earth so special on July 7, 2007, wasn’t just that MSN provided great content to consumers in a relevant, timely, and informative manner. Live Earth was the largest concert event ever produced — bringing together live music events in Australia, Brazil, Germany, Japan, South Africa, Turkey, the UK, and the US. Live Earth was also the most watched live entertainment event in Internet history. But what really sets it apart is that MSN completed its mission of keeping the public engaged on the network by providing avenues for them to act on that information.

Greco pointed out that, in addition to demonstrating marketing leadership, innovation, and responsibility, DMA Marketer of the Year nominees also needed to display a pattern of consistent contribution to the multichannel marketing profession, as well a high level of competence in one or more disciplines, such as product development, research, marketing, management, education, sales, administration, or technological innovation.

“Certainly, Microsoft hit its marks in each of these areas,” Greco said. “In presenting this award today, we also honor Microsoft’s powerful and small-business-friendly advertising platform, Microsoft adCenter. While adCenter and Live Earth are two very different initiatives, both demonstrate Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to enable consumers and business ‘to realize their full potential.’”

Past DMA Marketers of the Year

2006 Yahoo! Inc.

2005 David Neeleman, JetBlue Airways

2004 Jason Ackerman, FreshDirect

2003 Lowell W. “Bud” Paxson, Paxson Communications Corporation

2002 Shelly Lazarus, Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide

2001 Thomas O. Ryder, The Reader’s Digest Association

2000 Janice Brandt, America Online, Inc.

1999 Jay Walker, Priceline.com

1998 Don Peppers and Martha Rogers, Marketing 1to1/Peppers & Rogers Group

1997 Susan Hendricks, Metromail Corporation

1996 Jim McCann, 1-800-FLOWERS

1995 Jack E. Rosenfeld, Hanover Direct, Inc.

1994 Richard Wolter, The Columbia House Company

1993 Jack Miller, Quill Corporation

1992 Jerome W. Pickholz, Ogilvy & Mather Direct

1991 Robin B. Smith, Publishers Clearing House

1990 Richard L. Benson, The Benson Organization

1989 Stan Rapp & Tom Collins, Rapp & Collins Inc.

1988 Walter Weintz, The Weintz Company, Inc.

1987 Rose Harper, The Kleid Group

1986 Alexander C. Hoffman, Doubleday & Company

1985 Harold L. Schwartz, Montgomery Ward & Co.

1984 Henry C. Cowen, The Cowen Group, Inc.

1983 Robert J. Teufel, Rodale Press

1982 David Heneberry, RCA Selecta Vision Video Discs

1981 Joseph Sugarman, JS&A

1980 Leon A. Gorman, L.L. Bean

1979 Victor Sawdon, The Sawdon Company, Inc.

1978 Robert B. Clarke, Grolier Enterprises, Inc.

1977 Nat Ross, Lincoln Graphic Arts, Inc.

1976 Lou Kislik, Publishers Clearing House

1975 Cornelius Keating, CBS/Columbia House

1974 Joan Manley, Time-Life Books

1973 Joseph Segal, The Franklin Mint

1972 Jerome S. Hardy, The Dreyfus Fund

1971 Herman “Sonny” Schwartz, Fingerhut Corporation

1970 Leonard Carlson, Sunset House

1969 Walter Hitesman, Reader’s Digest

1968 Raymond C. Hagel, Macmillan Inc.

About MSN

MSN attracts more than 465 million unique users worldwide per month. With localized versions available globally in 42 markets and 21 languages, MSN is a world leader in delivering compelling programmed content experiences to consumers, and online advertising opportunities to businesses worldwide. MSN is located on the Web at http://www.msn.com.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft is a worldwide leader in software, services, and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

# # #