Business and enterprise software, and other applications that help a business run

In a further attempt to shore up its on-line products, Microsoft is now offering a new service called  Microsoft Dynamics CRM. This Customer Relationship Management offering in the burgeoning cloud computing marketplace could be seen as another attempt to get a leg up on rivals like Google, Oracle, and other recent CRM products with cloud computing components, such as SalesForce.com.

Microsoft says that their new service can be quickly and easily integrated with their Office and Outlook-based desktop communications and calendaring tools. There are multiple versions at various price levels, all of which appear to be aimed at undercutting SalesForce pricing.. This newest release is built to interface with Microsoft’s recently released Dynamics 4.0 software.

The Microsoft CRM offering is remarkable similar to the Software as a Service (SaaS) offering of SalesForce. Most parties interviewed about Microsoft Dynamics CRM have indicated that the offering may have a ways to go before it is competitive, citing integration and remote execution problems and shortfalls that still exist in the current system.

Although we have stated firmly in this column that none of the cloud computing platforms are quite ready for prime time, the combatants in this marketplace are very large and capable. If there proves to be a real and profitable market for these services, there is no doubt that the players will all gear up to improve them. We could all have our heads in the clouds in short order if these players get serious.