BT launches into SME online accounting market

BT Business has launched an online accounting application channel aimed at SMEs and their advisers.

It will offer Xero, an online accounting package of which its owner is listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange, to customers for free on a 30-day trial.

'Customer feedback is that traditional accounting packages are complicated to use, and can only be accessed while in the office. The research shows that employees are working harder and longer during the downturn anyway, so we hope that Xero users will instantly be more productive and redress an often dire work/life balance,' said Chris Lindsay, general manager at BT Business applications.

Delivered as software as a service (SaaS), Xero can be implemented quickly without the upfront licence fees, maintenance or upgrade costs associated with on-premise software.

The move by BT and Xero was 'clever,' said John Oates, Baker Tilly partner and chairman of the ICAEW IT faculty.

'It's a coup for Xero, partnering with the biggest telecoms operator, and for BT offering online applications will require customers to have resilient broadband.'

Xero passed the ICAEW IT faculty's product accreditation scheme last year.

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Visit the ICAEW IT faculty's product accreditation scheme website