Last year, Microsoft dumped its Microsoft Money application and put its weight behind Office Accounting for the SMB. Yesterday, Microsoft sent an email to their Microsoft Office Accounting customers stating that "We are writing to let you know that we will no longer distribute Microsoft Office Accounting after 16 November 2009".
"On 30 October 2009, Microsoft will transfer customer support for Office Accounting in the UK to Mamut Software Ltd. Product support for Office Accounting will continue in accordance with the published Microsoft product support life cycle." Customers are being offered a "free upgrade" to Mamut Business Software. Read more of the story at PCPro.
In addition to this - because Microsoft has walked away from the SMB-end of their financial software - they will also be dropping the majority of the benefits of the MPAN program: "We are writing to let you know that Microsoft® Office Accounting will no longer be distributed by Microsoft after November 16, 2009. As such, MPAN membership will also be closed to new members effective November 16, 2009 and the complimentary download of Office Accounting Professional 2009 and the Office Accounting Customization will be discontinued November 16, 2009. Some existing MPAN benefits, such as online on demand training, will remain".
Basically, Microsoft expects that a number of its customers will migrate up to its Dynamics products, which are their enterprise-level financial products, therefore quite unsuited for SMBs. I've always wondered why Microsoft bothered with Office Accounting in the first place and instead didn't offer a "Navision Lite" or "Great Plains Lite", meaning they could remain focussed in one direction instead of two. Unfortunately, with Microsoft dropping all SMB accounting support now, I don't see any "NV/GP Lite" product being released later to try and regain the clients Microsoft forced to move over to Mamut.
So, aren't we now glad Microsoft didn't introduce Office Accounting to Australia, as they promised years back? :)
Regards,
The Outspoken Wookie
3 comments:
it was a peice of crap anyway. glad to see it die. Hopefully it will take BCM with it. although word is 2010 version may be useable.
Its disappointing that Microsoft won't have a viable SMB accounting solution, not that they ever had one in Australia.
Every SMB needs an accounting package and it would be a great in for Partners if there were such a product underpinning a clients business.
Disappointing and short sighted.
SMB's wont migrate up to MS Dynamics products, they are to complex and expensive. What a waste of human effort and time involved in bringing this to market in the first place. They should sell it to another company who can take it forward. All the exec's in Redmond can think about is how to drag customers into higher margin products.
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