Microsoft set for global launch of SaaS Office products - UPDATED

Stuart Corner
Tuesday, 03 March 2009 03:36

Your IT - Home IT

Microsoft has made its Business Productivity Online Suite, part of Microsoft Online Services, available for trial to businesses of all sizes in 19 countries and announced plans to release Microsoft Office Communications Online, for instant messaging and presence, and the Business Productivity Online Deskless Worker Suite, an e-mail, calendaring and collaboration service for the occasional user.
This article has been updated to include comments from Microsoft on the exclusivity of its deal with Telstra.

The announcements were made at the CeBit 2009 IT show in Hannover and suggest that release of these services in Australia under a Telstra/Microsoft partnership is imminent. Stephen Elop, president of the Microsoft Business Division, claimed that: "Customers can save between 10 percent and 50 percent in IT-related expenditures as a result of deploying Microsoft Online Services."

Exchange Online and SharePoint Online are now available for trial in Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. Organisations worldwide will be able to trial and purchase the entire Business Productivity Online Suite, including Office Communications Online, in April.

Businesses will have the option to subscribe to Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Office Communications Online and Office Live Meeting individually or together as a suite. The Business Productivity Online Suite is currently listed at 12.78 euros ($A34.14) per month per user, which offers businesses a 38 percent discount, compared with subscribing separately to the individual services.

In addition, Microsoft says it is committed to providing opportunity for a global ecosystem of partners that will sell, customize and provide consulting, migration and managed services for Microsoft Online Services customers around the world.

The conspicuous absence of Australia from the list above is explained by the fact that, in Australia, Telstra announced last November a partnership with Microsoft to offer these services, but has yet to launch them.

Following the announcement of a similar global partnership between Vodafone and Microsoft last week, Deena Shiff, head of Telstra Business, told iTWire that Telstra's agreement with Microsoft was exclusive. Vodafone however suggested it was looking at introducing the services into Australia.

A spokesman for Microsoft has confirmed the exclusivity of its deal with Telstra saying: "The recent announcement surrounding Microsoft’s Online Services agreement with Vodafone does not include Australia. Microsoft Australia has announced a strategic alliance in Australia with Telstra as our primary distributor of Microsoft Online Services."

However he held open the possibility of some other channel to market saying: "Microsoft continues to support choice regarding the deployment of our solutions and we are working with our customers and the Australian partner community on a variety of business models and deployment architectures."
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