The Biggest Hits of the Year at No Cost: For First Time Ever, MSN Music Offers Free GRAMMY-Nominated Songs

(I-Newswire) February 8, 2005 - For the first time ever, top GRAMMY�-nominated songs are being given away free, as MSN� Music (http://grammys.msn.com) celebrates the GRAMMY Awards with free downloads of top Best Song nominees. Every day from Feb. 8 through Feb. 12, in the United States only, MSN Music will give away the MSN Music team's pick for Best Song in pop, rock, rap/hip-hop, soul/R&B, or country, with a different genre highlighted each day.*

"The GRAMMY Awards celebrate the best music has to offer, and now music fans can enjoy our picks for the best of the best -- absolutely free," said Rob Bennett, senior director of MSN Entertainment at Microsoft Corp. "This is also an excellent opportunity for people to discover songs they might not have tried before -- so pop fans can check out an outstanding country song, or rock fans can discover some of the year's best hip-hop."

One song, nominated in the following GRAMMY categories, will be available through MSN Music each day:

Tuesday, Feb. 8: Best Male Pop Vocal Performance/Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
Wednesday, Feb. 9: Best Rock Song
Thursday, Feb. 10: Best Rap Song
Friday, Feb. 11: Best R&B Song
Saturday, Feb. 12: Best Country Song
The songs will be announced each day and selected by MSN Music's editorial team, which consists of professional musicians and producers, record label executives, music journalists, DJs, promoters, and artist managers with a total of more than 300 years in the music industry, based on their predictions of which one will take home the GRAMMY in the respective categories.

In addition, Heineken is sponsoring a Heineken Lounge experience on MSN Music (http://music.msn.com/grammys/lounge) that has a wealth of GRAMMY-nominated music and information. The lounge includes videos from GRAMMY-nominated artists; highlights of last year's GRAMMY Awards; and the latest news and photos of top nominees.

About MSN

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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.

* One free song download per person, per day is available to U.S. residents 18 years and older. You will be prompted to set up an MSN Music account and provide a credit card number, but you will not be charged for music unless you purchase additional downloads at the regular retail price. You must agree to the Microsoft Music Download Service Agreement to access the service. Promotion ends Feb. 12, 2005.

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The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the 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. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft's Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.asp.

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