Building on a year of strong partner success and continued channel momentum, Microsoft Business Solutions today announced that it has reached agreements with two of its key retail distribution partners, ScanSource Inc. and Tech Data Corp. Under the agreements, Microsoft� Business Solutions Retail Management System will be available to authorized reseller partners via distributors ScanSource and Tech Data, rather than from Microsoft only. The agreements will offer both companies expanded options for distributing Microsoft Retail Management System, as well as provide authorized reseller partners with easier licensing and selling processes.

Microsoft Retail Management System is a point-of-sale (POS) and retail management application that helps small and midsize retailers increase their business productivity and profits. Offering connectivity between back-office activities and POS functions, Microsoft Retail Management System is targeted at special- and general-merchandise retailers that have up to approximately $5 million in annual revenue per store; it can also serve retailers with 100 or more stores that operate under a decentralized business model. The solution is sold primarily through resellers, and during Microsoft's current fiscal year, the product unit demonstrated a better than 20 percent increase in partner recruitment.