Microsoft ditches Office Accounting product

Microsoft has decided to call time on its Accounting product

Microsoft has begun telling UK customers that it will end sales of its Office Accounting product, according to a ZDNet report.

All Office Accounting products will be affected, including Express, Standard, Professional, Professional Plus, 3-user and Small Business Accounting.

A Microsoft Office spokesperson said that the decision was prompted by an increasing overlap with functionality in the firm's other offerings.

"After evaluating the product over the past few years we have determined that other Microsoft offerings, such as free templates in the Office system used with Excel and the Dynamics product, are able to meet our customers' needs," the spokesperson is reported as saying.

"The Office Small Business web site has links to free templates for small businesses, such as invoices, expenses, time sheets, budgets and more, and the Microsoft Small Business Center is also a great resource for small businesses."

Existing customers will still receive five years of free mainstream support, and a further five years of paid-for support, while companies that unwittingly bought the product recently can return it within 30 days, according to the report.

UK Microsoft partner Mamut has just taken over product support for Microsoft Office Accounting users.