CANNES, France and REDMOND, Washington - Verizon Wireless customers will have a convenient way to find hotels, book rooms and get on-the-go information.

Microsoft Corp. today announced that hotel operator Global Hyatt Corp. will launch a mobile advertising campaign that leverages Microsoft’s mobile advertising relationship with Verizon Wireless. The mobile advertising display campaign is designed to drive people to register for the Hyatt Gold Passport frequent guest rewards program and encourage people to visit Hyatt’s new, fully functional mobile Web site using their mobile phone.

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Under an agreement Microsoft and Verizon Wireless announced in January 2009, the Microsoft(R) Mobile Advertising team manages mobile search and display advertising across Verizon Wireless’ Mobile Web service. Verizon Wireless customers will now have a faster and more convenient way to find Hyatt hotels, book rooms, view and change reservations, check in or out, receive special promotions, and access general information on the go when using Verizon Wireless’ Mobile Web service.

“Microsoft Mobile Advertising provides us with a compelling and scalable solution that can drive awareness, and encourages people to interact with our mobile Web site as another channel to register for our rewards program and reserve a room,” said Amy Curtis-McIntyre, senior vice president of Brand Communications for Global Hyatt Corp. “The powerful combination of Microsoft’s popular destination sites like MSN and Verizon Wireless’ Mobile Web service not only offers exceptional reach to our target audience, but provides us with an efficient solution to work with both a large publisher and service provider through one simple platform.”

Leading Microsoft’s Mobile Advertising efforts is Charles Johnson, who was appointed as general manager in March to develop and execute the Mobile Advertising product marketing and partnership strategy.

“Mobile is a critical component of the overall Microsoft Advertising strategy. We’ve made significant investments to develop an agnostic platform that works with any phone, so that advertisers and publishers can reach and engage in meaningful ways with their target audiences,” Johnson said. “By working with Verizon Wireless, we’re executing on our vision to efficiently provide consumers with enhanced, entertaining and engaging mobile experiences that are useful to them on the go.”

“Mobile is an emerging and growing opportunity for advertisers and brands,” said Richard Williams, executive director for advertising and digital media at Verizon. “Together with Microsoft, we can provide value as they work to reach consumers on the go.”

To demonstrate the value of mobile advertising, Microsoft conducted a research study for Toyota in France in preparation for the launch of its IQ car. The goal of the study was to determine the impact of using a “two screen versus one” advertising approach in reaching consumers. The findings indicated that incorporating mobile advertising with online display advertising provided an increase to Toyota’s online presence, driving a 200 percent incremental lift in ad recall and a 40 percent lift in brand recall. In addition, the synergy between mobile search and mobile display showed similar results, with mobile display experiencing a 350 percent lift in ad recall and a 125 percent increase in brand recall through the inclusion of mobile search ads.

Microsoft Mobile Advertising is active in 12 countries and is an important component in Microsoft Advertising’s strategy and vision to reach audiences across multiple screens, platforms and devices. Unlike competitive advertising platforms, Microsoft Advertising offers advertisers access to tailored advertising campaigns across multiple screens, including PC, games and TV.

About Microsoft Advertising

Microsoft Advertising provides advertisers and publishers with media, tools and services designed to drive deep and profitable engagement with their audiences. This includes a global media network of Microsoft properties such as MSN, Windows Live, Xbox LIVE, and partner properties such as Facebook, WSJ.com and Verizon. The Microsoft Advertiser and Publisher Suites simplify planning and management of campaigns and content, offering a range of services that help advertisers and publishers untangle the complexities of digital media and get more out of their marketing and content investments. Microsoft Advertising makes buying and selling media simple, smart and cost-effective across media and devices spanning 42 markets and 21 languages. Visit advertising.microsoft.com for more information.

About Microsoft

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

Source: Microsoft Corp

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