Accelerator Aims at Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance

The Microsoft Office Solution Accelerator for Sarbanes-Oxley helps companies document their internal financial controls, as required of U.S. public companies by the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Released in Mar. 2004, the Accelerator enables companies to build intranet sites to collaborate on financial control documentation as they work toward compliance deadlines in late 2004 and mid-2005. Solutions built on the Accelerator will particularly benefit companies already using Microsoft products in their compliance efforts, but complete solutions will often require additional expertise and software.

Microsoft believes that regulatory compliance in general will be a significant driver of new business for itself and partners, so the company is willing to step in with solution accelerators for laws like Sarbanes-Oxley that affect large numbers of companies. For example, Microsoft will shortly update its BizTalk Server Accelerator for HIPPA, which supports compliance with the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.