On Nov. 15, Microsoft Corp. will join Hispanic Business Magazine in celebrating the success of 10 of the nation's most outstanding Hispanic entrepreneurs at the publication's 10th Annual Entrepreneur of the Year Award event at the Biltmore Hotel, 506 S. Grand Ave.

The Entrepreneur of the Year (EOY) Award will be presented to an individual chosen from among 10 finalists who specialize in the fields of media, advertising, banking, engineering, real estate, environmental safety, communications and the Internet. The award honors individuals whose companies demonstrate superior performance, effective management, employee growth and productivity.

"Hispanic entrepreneurs are a growing force in the U.S. economy," said Orlando Ayala, a native of Colombia who is vice president of Worldwide Sales, Marketing and Support at Microsoft. "At Microsoft, we understand the importance of working with small businesses, having dialogues with business owners and sponsoring events like the EOY that showcase the contributions and impact that Hispanic businesses have on their communities and our nation. Microsoft supports the Hispanic community. This year, our sponsorship of the 10th Annual Entrepreneur of the Year Award and our support of Hispanic small-business owners builds on the work that we have been doing in the Hispanic community over the past six years."

Launched September 1999, the bCentral™ small-business portal is the leading portal for small businesses on the Web, with over 1 million registered users. bCentral delivers an integrated set of services including Web site creation, domain name registration, online marketing tools, e-mail, e-commerce, customer management and business operations that will make core business processes more effective and efficient for small businesses

As part of the events on Nov. 15, there will be a kiosk where attendees can get a hands-on demonstration on how small businesses can benefit from extending their business presence to the Web, featuring Web-based services provided by Microsoft bCentral. Microsoft bCentral offers Web hosting, e-mail and Web marketing services to help businesses build their presence online. Last week, bCentral announced several new Web services including an e-commerce service to enable businesses to sell products and manage orders on multiple marketplaces, a customer management application, and a Web-based accounting application. These services will launch beginning this month and will help small businesses manage their core business processes more easily any time, any place and on any device.

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software -- any time, any place and on any device.

Microsoft and bCentral are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

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

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