Two Thirds of Brits Find Christmas a Chore-While men Don't Bother at all, says Bing.com

LONDON, November 26 - With a whole host of decisions to make in the lead-up to
Christmas, it seems that some of us are worrying so much about what presents
to buy or parties to plan that two thirds of Brits have admitted to finding
the festive period a complete nightmare - while nearly 40% of men have
decided not to bother with Christmas presents this year at all.

Research released today by Bing.com, the brand new search
engine from Microsoft, has found that despite the celebrations and
festivities, finding the perfect present topped the list of anxieties, with
70% agreeing they never know what to buy. And it seems that women are the
biggest worriers - with 30% concerned the recipient won't like the chosen
gift, compared to just 16% of men having the same concern.

What's more, with everyone so focused on finding the ideal
gift, a third of us forget to pick up an important ingredient for the
Christmas dinner - and a further third forget to buy the all important sticky
tape! Plus, factoring in the current economic climate with these Christmas
worries has led nearly a third of us to agree not to buy any presents this
year.

On the up side, it seems that girls do just want to have fun,
spending an average of 6% more of their time celebrating than men. And 41% of
us also agree that Christmas would be a lot easier if we could do a good
chunk of our Christmas chores in one place, making Bing.com the ideal
starting point.

Bing.com is built to help people make faster, more informed
decisions. With a clear and inspiring lay out and results that really cut
through internet clutter and reduce search overload, Bing helps Brits easily
search for information and discover the perfect present, at the best price.

Marie Thirlwall, Product Manager at Bing.com, said: "With the
festive period an increasingly stressful time for everyone, Bing can help to
make key Christmas decisions and therefore creates more time for celebrations
and relaxation. Yet Bing.com can solve more than just Christmas dilemmas; it
is designed to help us discover the best shopping offers, great local
restaurants, cool videos, smart maps and directions - and ultimately, take
the stress out of searching."

With nearly one in four panicking over what to buy Mum and
Dad, Bing's helping hand will take the stress out of Christmas
decision-making- and means the 20% of us, who are clueless about what we are
going to buy when we leave the house, can take a step in the right direction.

Notes to Editors:

To find out more about how to make Christmas go with a Bing, visit the
'Magic Bing Dome' on the following dates:

    - Manchester Trafford Center - 27th, 28th November, 10am -6pm
    - Birmingham Bull Ring - 4,5th December, 10am- 6pm

Talk to the experts at the 'Magic Bing Dome' about how to reduce search
overload this Christmas - plus, have the chance to win all the goodies under
the Bing tree, including a plasma TV and Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2, available
exclusively on Vodafone.

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. Microsoft, Windows Live and MSN 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 trademark of their respected owners.

*University of Southampton research

About the research

    - Poll conducted by One Poll on 16th November 2009
    - 3000 respondents were surveyed

A picture accompanying this release is available through the PA
Photowire. It can be downloaded from www.pa-mediapoint.press.net or
viewed at www.mediapoint.press.net or www.prnewswire.co.uk.

For more information: please call the Microsoft press line on +44(0)845-602-5628 or email ukprteam at microsoft.com.