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Washington State Chooses Bing for Internet Portal Search

OLYMPIA, Wash., July 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Washington citizens will now be able to find information located on the state Internet portal (http://access.wa.gov) in less time and with greater accuracy, thanks to a partnership between the Washington State Department of Information Services (DIS) and Microsoft Corp. This partnership allows DIS to integrate Microsoft's new decision engine, Bing, into the existing state Internet portal at no additional cost to Washington taxpayers.

"Adding Bing to Access Washington((R)) will improve the relevancy of search results on the portal, allowing users to find the information they are looking for faster and with greater accuracy," said DIS Deputy Director of Operations Jim Albert.

Microsoft unveiled Bing in May. "Three design goals guided the development of Bing," said Gail Thomas-Flynn, general manager of Microsoft's state and local government business. "We wanted to deliver great results with a more organized user experience, simplify tasks, and provide improved insight. Bing will lead to more confident decisions while allowing Washington residents to more easily find services as well as specific government and community information."

The Washington State Department of Information Services (DIS) provides telecommunications, computing, and digital government services to state, local, and tribal governments; higher education institutions, and qualified non-profit organizations. www.dis.wa.gov

Visit Access Washington((R)), the Washington State Internet Portal at http://access.wa.gov

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Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Bing, please visit http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/presskits/bing/default.mspx.

SOURCE Washington State Department of Information Services