Microsofts Simonyi quits to start new venture

Our Convergence Bureau
18 September 2002

Seattle: Charles Simonyi, one of Microsofts original programmers and the architect of the Word and Excel programmes, says he will leave the worlds largest software company after 21 years to initiate his own start-up.

Simonyis new company, Intentional Software Corp, will aim to create software that makes it easier to programme new applications through the use of graphic images, charts and text. "The goal is to make the [programming] process more efficient, more effective and responsive to the needs of programmers," he says.

Programmes today are mainly created by writing lengthy text code and have become extremely complicated due to the size and numerous features that they offer, he adds.

Microsoft has given its blessing to Simonyis venture. Simonyi will retain rights to use patents he developed at Microsoft while the Redmond, Washington-based software giant will is entitled to be the first to negotiate for rights to use Intentional Softwares developments.

"Im very excited about the work that Charles is pursuing and very pleased that we will continue to have an ongoing relationship," says Microsoft chairman Bill Gates.

After discussions with Gates, Simonyi says it became clear the market for aspect-based programming tools was too small for Microsoft, which now sells software for more than 90 per cent of the personal computers and is shifting its focus to Web-based software in services in an initiative called .NET.