Microsoft Office 12 To Include Business Intelligence

Microsoft Office 12 To Include Business Intelligence

The latest version of Microsoft's Application Software 'Office' will incorporate an advanced financial analysis technology. This move will put pressure on small companies that are exclusively into financial analysis.

The next version of Microsoft extremely popular software 'Office' will hit the market by the end of 2006. This version will include, apart from other advanced features, a technology called 'Business Intelligence'. This technology will make it possible for unspecialized workers in businesses to perform highly specialized financial analyses.

Until now, Business Intelligence has been the domain of highly specialized professionals and companies. But things are about to change. With the coming of Office 12, big companies will be able to do sophisticated financial analysis, required for processes like budgeting and projection, in-house rather than outsourcing them to specialists.

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"We're definitely designing Office 12 to eliminate the need for other BI technologies," said Chris Caren, General Manager for Office Business Applications at Microsoft. The companies specializing in Business Intelligence will have to measure up or perish. Companies like Cognos Inc and Business Objects SA will have to provide more advanced products to survive the competition.

Microsoft's new software will be directed towards business users and would be able to cull out data from large business databases. The Business Intelligence software would be compatible to databases that exist on competing Application Programs like Oracle. But for highly sophisticated analysis Microsoft's own server products will have to be used. Microsoft intends to use the Business Intelligence software as an incentive for existing Office users to upgrade to Office 12 when it is introduced in 2006. The last version of Office was introduced in 2003.

Microsoft's move comes in wake of the stiff competition from competitors like Sun Microsystems. So it is 'Survival of the Fittest' for Microsoft too!