Setting its sights on the world stage, a newly launched Australian independent software vendor (ISV) has announced plans to launch two software products for the business and government sectors to support Microsoft’s server solutions.

Unique World Software, a spin-off from NSW-based systems integrator Unique World, has begun developing its own brand of software which can be used to integrate Microsoft server software technologies with other enterprise content management applications and solutions.

The Unique World consulting group is a qualified Microsoft integrator which focuses on deploying the vendor’s application server technology. Its corporate customers include Harvey Norman, Coca-Cola and Nestle, as well as government departments such as the NSW Premier’s Department, NSW Department of Lands and the Commonwealth Department of Employment and Workplace relations.

Recently appointed general manager software company, Christophe Dumonet, said the ISV unit will focus on building complementary products and software connectors to Microsoft’s application server tools, such as SharePoint Portal Server and Content Management Server. Its forthcoming TIPS SharePoint tool was designed to integrate Tower Software’s Trim Context records and document management product with Microsoft’s SharePoint Portal Server 2003, according to the company.

Dumonet said the idea for TIPS SharePoint stemmed from Unique World system integrators implementing Microsoft’s portal server product with government accounts. “Unique World discovered they [customers] wanted to integrate content management products into the server,” he said.

Dumonet said Tower Software, which is installed in around 80 per cent of government accounts, had no facility to integrate its Trim software into the Microsoft SharePoint product. Similarly, Microsoft had not developed the software connectors to integrate the Trim Context product into its technologies.

As well as TIPS, Unique World Software is also working on the commercial version of its InfoView product, which will be used to convert Web forms designed in Microsoft’s InfoPath into ASP.Net forms viewable through a standard Internet browser.

Dumonet said Microsoft’s Infopath product is a useful tool for companies wanting to create Web forms more easily. However, in order to consume these Web forms, companies would need to install Infopath across every desktop – something that many business are yet to do, he said.

“There will be companies deploying Infopath and Microsoft Office 2003 (which are bundled together by Microsoft) that won’t need our product,” Dumonet said.

But in the short term, there are plenty of businesses that have not yet migrated their desktops to Office 2003 that could benefit from InfoView, he said.

Dumonet said the Microsoft’s consulting services have assisted Unique World Software with the development of TIPS SharePoint by reviewing the architecture of the product for reliability and scalability, as well as guidance and assistance with regards to the company’s market strategy. TIPS SharePoint was also tested in Microsoft’s ISV lab in the US. Both products have also been developed using C# using Microsoft’s .Net developer platform and have a rough RTM deadline for some stage this quarter.

While the ISV will be distributing its products through the Unique World services business, Dumonet said he is negotiating with several systems integrators around Australia and overseas to push its products globally.

“Unique World for example are in NSW and Canberra only,” he said. “We want to set up a global company and move into the global market.”