Microsoft Outlines Revenue Recognition for the Office offer

         Microsoft Outlines Revenue Recognition for the Office offer

Company will defer a portion of revenue from sales of Office 2010 & Office for
Mac 2011

PR Newswire

REDMOND, Wash., Sept. 17, 2012

REDMOND, Wash., Sept. 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Microsoft Corp. today announced
the details of the Office offer providing consumers, students and small
businesses who buy qualifying Office 2010 or Office for Mac 2011 the option to
upgrade during the time of promotion.

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO)

Starting October 19, people who purchase Office 2010 or Office for Mac 2011
will qualify to download, for free, one year of Office 365 Home Premium or the
equivalent Office 2013 offering, when available. Small business customers in
applicable markets will also be eligible for a three-month trial of Office 365
Small Business Premium.

For additional details on the Office offer, please see the company's
announcement at http://blogs.office.com/b/office-news/

In association with the Office offer, Microsoft will defer revenue from
eligible sales under the program to the earlier of the fulfillment date or the
program's expiration date.  For the first quarter of fiscal year 2013,
Microsoft will defer an estimated $100 million to $140 million of revenue
related to licenses sold into distribution channels that will be subsequently
sold to end customers under the terms of the offer. The deferral only impacts
the timing of revenue recognition and will not impact cash flows from
operations. 

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.

Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this release that are "forward-looking statements" are based on
current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and
uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially because of factors such
as:

  o execution and competitive risks in transitioning to cloud-based computing;
  o challenges to Microsoft's business model;
  o intense competition in all of Microsoft's markets;
  o Microsoft's continued ability to protect its intellectual property rights;
  o claims that Microsoft has infringed the intellectual property rights of
    others;
  o the possibility of unauthorized disclosure of significant portions of
    Microsoft's source code;
  o actual or perceived security vulnerabilities in Microsoft products that
    could reduce revenue or lead to liability;
  o improper disclosure of personal data that could result in liability and
    harm to Microsoft's reputation;
  o outages and disruptions of services provided to customers directly or
    through third parties if Microsoft fails to maintain an adequate
    operations infrastructure;
  o government litigation and regulation affecting how Microsoft designs and
    markets its products;
  o Microsoft's ability to attract and retain talented employees;
  o delays in product development and related product release schedules;
  o significant business investments that may not gain customer acceptance and
    produce offsetting increases in revenue;
  o unfavorable changes in general economic conditions, disruption of our
    partner networks or sales channels, or the availability of credit that
    affect demand for Microsoft's products and services or the value of our
    investment portfolio;
  o adverse results in legal disputes;
  o unanticipated tax liabilities;
  o quality or supply problems in Microsoft's consumer hardware or other
    vertically integrated hardware and software products;
  o impairment of goodwill or amortizable intangible assets causing a charge
    to earnings;
  o exposure to increased economic and regulatory uncertainties from operating
    a global business;
  o geopolitical conditions, natural disaster, cyberattack or other
    catastrophic events disrupting Microsoft's business; and
  o acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic alliances that adversely affect
    the business.

For further information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with
Microsoft's business, please refer to the "Management's Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and "Risk Factors"
sections of Microsoft's SEC filings, including, but not limited to, its annual
report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, copies of which may be
obtained by contacting Microsoft's Investor Relations department at (800)
285-7772 or at Microsoft's Investor Relations website at
http://www.microsoft.com/investor/.

All information in this release is as of September 17, 2012. The company
undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement to conform the
statement to actual results or changes in the company's expectations.

SOURCE Microsoft Corp.

Website: http://www.microsoft.com
Contact: press, Rapid Response Team, Waggener Edstrom Worldwide,
+1-503-443-7070, rrt@waggeneredstrom.com; or financial analysts and investors,
Bill Koefoed, general manager, Investor Relations, +1-425-706-4400