NEW DELHI
FEBRUARY 7, 2007

Microsoft Corporation India released its latest version of its high-end ERP (enterprise resource planning) software Dynamics AX 4.0 (formerly Axapta) in India today to take SAP and Oracle head-on.

Since its launch in the US in June 2006, Dynamics AX 4.0 has more than 7,000 deployments across the globe. AX 4.0 is Microsoft's second offering in the ERP segment. Last year the company had announced Dynamics NAV, targeted at the Small and Medium Business segments and has customer base of over 550 enterprises across verticals.

Dynamics AX 4.0 will ship with roles-based features so that users can gain access to the ERP data relevant to their position within a company. Dynamics AX 4.0 also features RFID (radio frequency ID) functionality that will integrate with Microsoft's RFID Server, which is currently in beta testing.

Doug Hauger, COO, Microsoft India, said, that AX 4.0 will help in filling the gap that exists in some of the ERP packages available in the market.

"Today ERP is being implemented in the large enterprises. But so far these implementation has not seen the return on investment. So far, we have implemented Dynamics AX 4.0 in 7000 organizations and more than 70 percent of them have seen the return on investment," he said.

Further he added that Dynamics AX 4.0 has been designed to work seamlessly across heterogeneous environments. "The sheer simplicity, ease of deployment and familiarity of the user interface would facilitate increased adoption and use."

Commenting on the general availability of AX4.0 Sushant Dwivedy, Business Group Lead, Microsoft Dynamics, Microsoft India, said, "Industry and vertical specific solutions are the need of the day and increasingly Enterprises are asking for customized solutions that address their business needs specifically. However, with most ERP implementations the complexity of the interface and the time taken to deploy and master the implementation prove to be big deterrents. By leveraging the familiar user interface, Microsoft has sought to simplify the entire process. We have consciously worked with customers and partners to test and strengthen the solution before bringing it to market and already have solutions for the Manufacturing, ITES, Construction, Automotive and Industrial equipment industries."

Dwivedy said that according to IDC, the ERP market is expected to maintain a CAGR of 18 percent over the period 2006 - 2010.

"In 2006, the ERP market in India was estimated at $155.3 million. In verticals spend ERP adoption was lead by discrete manufacturing industries like automotive, consumer products and electronics followed by the services industry," he added.

Danish software firm Damgaard, which Navision acquired in 2000, created dynamics AX, formerly known as Axapta. Microsoft purchased Navision in 2002.

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