KDDI Corporation and Microsoft Co., Ltd. today announced that they have reached an agreement to jointly develop and provide applications using a Software as a Service (SaaS) delivery model for corporate users. The companies will also create an ecosystem to provide extensive support to independent software vendor (ISV) partners and spur the development of new service-enabled applications to drive momentum for new SaaS applications. The companies will embark on joint marketing activities to cultivate the adoption of SaaS among ISVs in Japan. They will also jointly educate the corporate market on the benefits of the SaaS model.

Under the agreement, KDDI will use Microsoft® Connected Services Framework as a foundation for providing services to customers. The first SaaS application will be built on Microsoft Solution for Hosted Messaging and Collaboration, a carrier-grade platform that offers enterprise-class e-mail and document-sharing services to corporate customers. Subscription is a monthly fee-based model, covering mobile and fixed-line communications and the SaaS application. The service will create a seamless work environment by allowing corporate customers to access their data on a PC in the office or on a mobile phone when they are on the go. This initiative is a demonstration of a service-delivered solution that combines services, software and hardware to provide a seamless user experience.