SONY BMG Music Entertainment

London 5th February 2008 – The latest music videos, news and information on some of the world’s most popular artists from one of the world’s biggest music companies, SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT, will soon be available on Microsoft Europe’s free, video-on-demand internet channel – MSN Video.

As a result of this agreement, music fans will be able to choose from a wide selection of videos and exclusive videos as well as backstage footage, interviews, artist biographies, tour information and photos from some of the biggest superstars, representing virtually every genre of music, all without ever having to go to a specialist music site or leave their PC.

Videos from SONY BMG’s vast rosters of superstar and emerging artists will add to the existing selection of news, music, movie trailers, celebrity gossip and other entertainment videos on MSN Video.

Geoff Sutton, Executive Producer, MSN Europe, said, “Being able to check out new videos from your favourite artists on MSN Video and then share the links with your mates over Windows Live Messenger is a powerful thing.

“We know that music is a big part of the Messenger audiences’ lives and we have a long history of providing premium music content on MSN including exclusive webcasts such as the Live Earth concerts in summer 2007. Adding premium video content from SONY BMG is a great way for us to offer even more music choice to our viewers.”

Ulrich Jäerkel, Senior Vice President, Digital & Business Development at SONY BMG in Europe commented, “With a substantial audience across Europe, MSN is a great way for our artists to connect with music fans throughout the region. We look forward to working with MSN Europe as we give their viewers the chance to experience great music, and share it with their friends.”

The European deal covers Sony BMG video content for the UK, France, and Germany with the Netherlands Belgium, Spain, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Italy, Russia and Poland to follow.

MSN Video is currently viewed by more than 6 million European unique users per month. The MSN Video audience grew by 60% in five months from July to November 2007 in established markets (UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands) and nearly 70% taking into account the addition of MSN Video in Sweden and Denmark. Partnering with leading content and entertainment providers such as MTV is part of Microsoft’s strategy to build the MSN audience further and deliver increased and better targeted results for its advertisers.

For more information, please contact:
EMEA PR Team, The Red Consultancy
redOSBEMEA@redconsultancy.com / +44 (0)207 025 6419

Ngaire Moyes, Microsoft Online Services Group EMEA PR
ngairem@microsoft.com/ +44 (0) 7967 235 561

John McKay, SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
+1 212 833 5520

About MSN Video
MSN Video player provides an extensive array of videos, from breaking news to the latest in entertainment such as movie trailers and celebrity interviews and sports action together with user-generated or created content. The player features a split screen format that allows viewers to search for the next video to watch while concurrently watching a video.
The MSN Video player now offers unique ways for people to share links to their favourite videos – whether this is programmed content such as entertainment, news or sport or user created content, users can provide links to these videos in their Windows Live Hotmail or via their online blog – Windows Live Spaces. For those creating or viewing ‘user generated content’ via soapbox they can embed clips in a Windows Live Messenger conversation so they can share a video and chat with their friends about it at the same time.
Microsoft has also introduced a unique time-based advertising approach to MSN Video, designed to serve ads to consumers at regular intervals. This approach is intended to offer a less intrusive overall ad experience, resulting in a more receptive audience and increased ad effectiveness.

About MSN and Windows Live
MSN attracts more than 465 million unique users worldwide per month. With localised versions available globally in 42 markets including 18 in EMEA. MSN is a world leader in delivering compelling programmed content experiences to consumers and online advertising opportunities to businesses worldwide. Windows Live™, a comprehensive set of personal Internet services and software, is designed to bring together in one place all the relationships, information and interests people care about most, with enhanced safety and security features across their PC, devices and the Web. Windows Live services can be found at http://ideas.live.com. Live Search is available at http://www.live.com.

About Microsoft Corporation
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

About SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT is a global recorded music joint venture with a roster of current artists that includes a broad array of both local artists and international superstars, as well as a vast catalog that comprises some of the most important recordings in history. SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT is 50% owned by Bertelsmann A.G. and 50% owned by Sony Corporation of America.