Sage tempts SMEs with free Net access

Software company, Sage has launched a free Internet access service for its customers in an attempt to encourage SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) to invest in ecommerce.

The site, located at http://www.sage.com, is a business-focused portal providing an aggregation of the company's products and services along with those of third parties. But David Errington, chief technology officer at Sage, said it is not "just a vehicle for shopping," being aimed instead at introducing ecommerce to SMEs.

Errington said: "This service is helping people to get on the Web by offering them a trusted environment. We're demystifying the Web for them."

Stewart Halliday, member of the IT and business development committee at the Federation of Small Business, agreed that SMEs need encouraging, but doubted whether offering free Internet access is the answer. "Even if you give away free Web access, companies still have to pay for Web space, and SMEs worry they won't get a return on investment. The cost situation is the problem."

But Errington denied the company is jumping on the free ISP (Internet service provider) bandwagon. "We're not trying to be another free ISP, but we have to do this to get into the mainstream in the UK," he said.

Errington claimed SMEs are also reluctant to trade online, as they still perceive the Internet as being unsafe for confidential transactions. Free Internet access helps to solve this problem, he claimed. "It's a perception problem with the user rather than a technology problem. They don't see it as secure enough and by offering the services and support for free, it's the first step on an easy and affordable ladder to ecommerce."