"Universant's selection for the Microsoft Startup Accelerator Program is an important vote of confidence in the value proposition delivered by the Universant Business Software Appliance," said Craig H. Macy, chief executive officer at Universant. "The support provided by Microsoft's Startup Accelerator Program will help Universant move forward in communicating and delivering this value to an ever-wider group of customers and partners. We are pleased to be selected by Microsoft to be part of this vital program."

Microsoft is committed to serving as a valuable technology and business partner for emerging startups and their investors. Companies are selected to join the program based on their innovation, marketability, growth potential, funding, platform decision and strategic importance to Microsoft. These companies receive customized engagement plans designed to support their software development and increase market visibility.

"The Universant Business Software Appliance leverages the Microsoft platform to deliver on values, which are important to Microsoft customers, including ease of use, robust and scalable architecture, reliability, and low overall total cost of ownership," said Dan'l Lewin, corporate vice president of Microsoft's Emerging Business Team. "We believe that for small and medium enterprise (SME) customers, independent software vendors (ISVs), and value added solution providers (VASP), these requirements will now will lead them to choose the Universant Business Software Appliance that is built on robust Microsoft platforms such as Windows Server, SQL Server, Microsoft .NET Framework, and Microsoft Office. We are delighted to support Universant through the Microsoft Startup Accelerator Program."

About the Microsoft Emerging Business Team

The Microsoft EBT evaluates hundreds of technology startups each year to identify those with the strongest potential to succeed in the market, shape the industry's future, and enhance the overall value of Microsoft products and services for customers. The Microsoft Startup Accelerator Program shines the spotlight on some of the most promising startups and provides good examples of how startups can work successfully with Microsoft Corporation.

About Universant Corporation

Universant enables small and medium enterprises (SME), independent software vendors (ISV), and value added solution providers (VASP), to design, model, configure, test, deploy, and maintain branded solutions that are comprehensive, extensible, and best of breed, in On Premise, On Demand SaaS, and Hybrid environments. The Universant Business Software Appliance™ (patents pending) raises the line of simplicity to the brink of the user interface, and renders complicated, lengthy, and expensive business solutions development a thing of the past. The Universant solution offerings are made possible through our strategic partnerships with Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Arrow Electronics, and OpSource. For more information, visit the Universant Web site, www.universant.com.