Microsoft in 2009 had announced the BizSpark Programme aimed at facilitating the creation of a tech-friendly ecosystem in India.
It has since been followed by the BizSpark One plan, an improvement on the erstwhile BizSpark programme.
The programme helps start-ups by allowing them access to Microsoft’s development tools, platform technologies, and production licences of server products, and by aiding visibility.
“The challenges facing an IT business at its beginning tend to be generic — flow of funds, credibility, need for strategic and tactical partnerships and gaining visibility. This is where BizSpark steps in,” said Girish Joshi, programme coordinator, Microsoft India. So, for example, when aligning a new company into the programme, Microsoft provides the still-nascent company with access to the production licences of server products, including the Windows Azure platform, for use in product development.
One such company is iCreate Software, a Bangalore based start-up. It is a software formula-based company that provides e-banking solutions in the Middle East and Africa. iCreate was approached by Microsoft about three months back, and the two are in the process of integrating the company into the BizSpark One plan. The company fits all three of the Microsoft prerequisites — it is less than three years old, its overall income is less than $1 million and, according to the Microsoft estimates, it has “potential”.
