New Microsoft strategy changes face of electronic commerce

Microsoft Corporation CEO Bill Gates today unveiled a sweeping new vision designed to bring more than a million new businesses online within a year. South African businesses and consumers are set to benefit significantly from this vision through an increased ability to exchange data and conduct business over the Internet.

The launch of the Microsoft Commerce Strategy coincides with the start of Microsoft South Africa`s `Commerce Month`. This will include the announcement of local partners who will roll out the new strategy.

Microsoft`s Commerce Strategy is implemented through an integrated suite of products and services, including those on the MSN network of Internet services that will support Microsoft BizTalk, a new common language for e-commerce.

"We`re aiming to open up massive opportunities for commerce in South Africa with these tools," said Gordon Frazer, customer solutions director of Microsoft SA. "The impact this strategy will have can be compared to the effect the introduction of ATMs had on the banking industry. In simple terms, the Microsoft Commerce Strategy will provide unprecedented levels of access to electronic commerce for South African businesses and consumers."

"You don`t have to be a big company with a huge budget to develop effective commerce solutions. We`ll demonstrate this through a series of commerce workshops to explain the issues and their ramifications to local business," said Frazer.

The strategy, which is designed to address a wide range of business needs from direct marketing and selling to employee self-service and value-chain trading, will be implemented through an integrated suite of products and services. Apart from BizTalk, Microsoft Passport will create a faster, more secure buying process for consumers. An open marketplace will be created on portal site MSN through broader service offerings and the acquisition of CompareNet, one of the Internet`s leading comparison shopping services.

Three new software products and services have also been announced to expand the popular Microsoft commerce platform. Microsoft Commerce Server will make it easier for businesses to build sophisticated commerce sites; a new Microsoft BizTalk server will provide the tools and services for the sharing of data; and Small Business Commerce Services will allow small businesses to quickly build web sites, promote their business and sell online.

A number of companies announced their endorsement of the Microsoft Commerce Platform and BizTalk initiative. MasterCard International and Clarus announced plans to cooperatively market integrated, Internet-based corporate purchasing solutions based on the Microsoft Commerce Platform. PeopleSoft announced it will base its PeopleSoft Business Network on the Microsoft Commerce Platform. And SAP AG announced support for BizTalk as well as an expanded partnership with Microsoft to develop open catalog standards and application connectors between Microsoft and SAP applications.

New MSN Services; Acquisition of CompareNet

Specifically, Microsoft announced an open marketplace strategy for MSN, creating the ultimate shopping environment. Businesses will benefit from the innovative ways that MSN can reach customers online through advertising, distribution and promotional opportunities that allow businesses to target customers when they are ready to buy. MSN will bring together millions of buyers and sellers with the addition of new services that deliver in-depth information on the widest array of goods and services. The marketplace strategy includes building a comprehensive shopping directory by utilizing BizTalk. The acquisition of CompareNet will make the directory more useful for consumers. Microsoft Passport, also announced today, will enable a faster, more secure purchase process for consumers.

Microsoft BizTalk Initiative

BizTalk is a framework based on new Extensible Markup Language (XML) schemas and industry standards that will enable businesses to integrate their systems regardless of the platform, operating system or underlying technology on which they are based. BizTalk will help businesses more easily exchange business data, such as purchasing documents and product catalogs, and conduct promotional campaigns with online trading partners. Microsoft will work collaboratively with customers, partners and industry consortia to define BizTalk schemas and to accelerate the adoption of industry standards. The company will also incorporate BizTalk schemas into the Microsoft Commerce Platform, the MSN network of Internet services and future versions of Office, BackOffice and Windows.

For more details on Microsoft`s Commerce Strategy announcements, see related press releases at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/commerce/