Intuit Announces Beta Release of New QuickBase Web Development Platform
Unlocks Small Business Market Opportunity for Web Developers
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
For the first time, developers and independent software vendors will have the ability to easily design, deploy and market on-demand collaborative and productivity applications to millions of small businesses.
Today, Intuit (Nasdaq:INTU) QuickBase(R) launched the beta release of the QuickBase Development Environment and a new QuickBase Developer Program. This new Platform-as-a-Service will allow developers to rapidly create rich Internet applications, or RIAs, which work with QuickBooks(R) using a new toolkit that leverages the Adobe(R) Flex(R) open source development framework and QuickBase's proven on-demand database, application and workflow capabilities.
"We are now enlisting the help of an enormous community of talented developers to create innovative, rich Web-based solutions to important business problems," said Bill Lucchini, vice president and general manager of Intuit QuickBase. "To ensure developers can continue to innovate we're also providing them with the fastest and easiest way to build a profitable Software-as-a-Service business."
Leveraging the QuickBase Developer Program, developers can:
-- Rapidly Develop RIAs that Work with QuickBooks: Intuit has
created a complete application development environment based
on the Eclipse(TM) IDE that integrates QuickBase functionality
with Adobe Flex and packaged connections to QuickBooks data
files that are automatically synchronized. Demonstrations of
how quickly applications can be developed and connected to
QuickBooks are available here.
-- Focus on Innovation, Not Infrastructure: Developers can now
leverage the power of the QuickBase platform for user
authentication and permissions, database management, e-mail
notifications, reporting and more using the QuickBase API.
Developers need only to build applications and QuickBase will
host them on its enterprise-class, highly scalable and
reliable infrastructure.
-- Reach Millions of Potential Users: Developers will be able to
reach a potential market of nearly 25 million employees within
small businesses using QuickBooks(R). Applications built on
the platform will be featured on the Intuit Solutions
Marketplace, which reaches millions of small businesses
looking for QuickBooks add-ons.
-- Benefit from Utility-based Billing. Once applications are
deployed, QuickBase will only charge developers for the
computing resources their applications use. QuickBase will
also manage customer billing so developers can focus on
creating great solutions, not moving money.
"Adobe RIA technologies are rapidly becoming the standard for creating engaging business applications delivered as a service," said Michele Turner, vice president of product marketing and product management at Adobe. "Intuit is now enabling tens of thousands of developers to create compelling user experiences with Flex that easily connect to powerful QuickBooks financial software for small businesses. In the future, added capabilities will allow these same RIAs to be deployed on Adobe AIR, which will enable developers to extend their Web applications right to the desktop."
Adobe Flex Builder(TM) 3 is a highly productive, Eclipse-based development environment for building and maintaining expressive RIAs that deploy consistently on all major browsers via Adobe Flash(R) Player, and on the desktop with Adobe AIR(TM). Applications built using Flex are highly interactive and dramatically enhance the user experience, increasing customer satisfaction and user productivity.
There is no cost to join the QuickBase Developer Program and no cost during application development. In addition, developers building on the platform will receive the QuickBase Developer SDK, which includes the toolkit for Adobe Flex, a free QuickBase developer account and training resources.
Several developers have already begun building Web applications using the QuickBase Development Environment and will be demonstrated in the QuickBase booth (#421) at Web 2.0 Expo San Francisco from April 22-25, 2008.
Program Registration
The QuickBase Developer Program is now available in closed beta to a limited amount of participants. The beta program is intended to gather feedback from developers. For more information about the QuickBase Development Environment or to apply for early access to the program, please visit: http://quickbase.intuit.com/partners/developer-program.
About Intuit Inc.
Intuit Inc. is a leading provider of business and financial management solutions for small and mid-sized businesses; financial institutions, including banks and credit unions; consumers and accounting professionals. Its flagship products and services, including QuickBooks(R), Quicken(R) and TurboTax(R) software, simplify small business management and payroll processing, personal finance, and tax preparation and filing. ProSeries(R) and Lacerte(R) are Intuit's leading tax preparation software suites for professional accountants. The company's financial institutions division, anchored by Digital Insight, provides on-demand banking services to help banks and credit unions serve businesses and consumers with innovative solutions.
Founded in 1983, Intuit had annual revenue of $2.67 billion in its fiscal year 2007. The company has approximately 8,000 employees with major offices in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and other locations. More information can be found at www.intuit.com.
Intuit, the Intuit logo, QuickBooks and QuickBase, among others, are registered trademarks and/or registered service marks of Intuit Inc. in the United States and other countries. Adobe, Flex, Flex Builder, Adobe AIR and Flash are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. Other parties' trademarks or service marks are the property of their respective owners and should be treated as such.
Source: Intuit Inc.
Released April 17, 2008