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Information Technology News Microsoft to put CRM on line
Information Technology News Microsoft to put CRM on line | Microsoft to put CRM on line |
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| by Stuart Corner | |
| Wednesday, 12 July 2006 | |
  
The hosted CRM offering, to be called Microsoft Dynamics CRM Live, will be operated and managed by Microsoft within its Windows Live data centres. It will use the same code base as the on-premise and partner-hosted versions of Microsoft CRM, a strategy that will allow customers to choose the best deployment option for their business and IT needs at any time, according to Microsoft. Microsoft Dynamics is the umbrella name for a line of financial, customer relationship and supply chain management applications from Microsoft that are all part of its vision of the 'People-Ready Business' and the new Microsoft CRM Live service will be integrated with Microsoft's Windows Live services and Office Live services. Microsoft Dynamics CRM Live is planned for introduction in North America in the second quarter of 2007. It will initially be targeted primarily at small businesses, a segment that, according to Microsoft, has traditionally been under-served by the lack of flexible and cost-effective CRM solutions. However, Microsoft claims there is no limit to the number of users that the system can support. Microsoft partners will have access to the service in the second half of 2006. More information at http://www.crmlive.com . Other announcements made at the conference included: - The launch of Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2. New features include the 'Green Check' of software health that "helps customers protect their vital business data; keep networks, PCs and servers up to date; and stay connected virtually from anywhere, anytime" and increased mailbox limits (from 16 to 75 GB). Windows SBS 2003 R2 will be available in North America from August at $US599 for the standard edition and $US1239 for the premium edition. According to Allison Watson, corporate vice president of the Worldwide Partner Group at Microsoft, "If ever there was an ideal time to be a Microsoft partner, it's right now. Microsoft's People-Ready Business wave of innovation, which will continue with launches over the next 12 months, will be one of the most exciting times in Microsoft's history." At the conference Microsoft introduced two new resources for partners: the Demo Showcase for People-Ready Business and eight customer campaigns that consist of a set of offerings targeted to solve a customer problem or create a new opportunity consistent with Microsoft's People-Ready Business vision. They focus on scenarios such as building customer connections, optimising the application platform infrastructure, and sales and marketing. Microsoft claims that Nearly 500,000 partners have downloaded and activated Beta 2 of Office 2007 and says thousands of partners have already received training. "Compared to the 75 partner solutions available at the time of the Office 2003 launch, there are already nearly 900 early adopter partners developing solutions on the 2007 release. An unprecedented number of partners worldwide are planning to capitalize on the $US148 billion services opportunity for information worker solutions." |
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