MINNEAPOLIS: At the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference 2005, the software giant announced that it had plans to venture into credit card processing for small business accounting software.
Microsoft said that it would look to collaborate with top merchant acquiring institutions including Chase Merchant Services, L.L.C, in order to institute this scheme that has been called 'Microsoft Office Small Business Accounting 2006.'
This service is aimed at businesses that employ less than 25 employees. Announcing the details, Steve Guggenheimer, MS vice president of Small Midmarket Solutions & Partner Group said, "Throughout the design and development of Small Business Accounting, we've been completely focused on delivering a competitively priced solution that simplifies financial management for our small-business customers."
Credit Card Processing for Small Business Accounting 2006 envisages bringing some relief to small businesses by reducing the need for data entry, cutting costs as well as finding methods to improve revenue. The scheme looks to improve revenue for the small businesses by allowing customers to pay by credit/debit cards. The service would also make the need for a separate terminal or a phone line redundant and since all transactions will be directly recorded in the Small Business Accounting, the cumbersome task of data entry would be reduced.
Commenting on this move, the executive vice president of Chase Merchant Services, Drew Freeman said, "Chase Merchant Services’ expertise in providing small businesses with payment solutions and Microsoft’s industry-leading software applications and strong brand is a significant step."
Mr Guggenheimer said that Microsoft was aware of the fact that small businesses wanted to be able to accept credit and debit cards for purchases in a smooth manner, "With this strategic relationship, we are working to make this process incredibly easy for small businesses while also helping them to cut down on their costs."
Posted
on : Fri, 15 Jul 2005 07:35 GMT | Business News
By : Mike Lawson
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