Jan 7, 2008

Local company's software recognized

By Banks Albach / Daily News Staff Writer

A new Menlo Park software company is making waves in the information world with a service that can link millions of Excel spreadsheets between companies across the globe.

The start-up, eXpresso Corp., is being recognized by PC World magazine today in Las Vegas as offering one of the 25 most innovative products of 2007. Although it landed 24th place, the year-old company is sharing the stage with giants such as Apple, Google, Kodak and Amazon.

The company launched the spreadsheet platform in August and has since gained 4,000 customers, half of whom signed up in the last month.

"The recognition of the approach we've taken - this is huge for us," CEO George Langan said.

The user process is simple, Langan said. Simply sign up, upload spreadsheets and customize each document with security settings. Users can list which other companies or individuals can access and edit their spreadsheets, and eXpresso Corp. keeps a detailed activity history for each document. Users can edit or view the spreadsheets live from eXpresso's servers, or download them to a laptop, for example, edit them and send them back.

Langan said eXpresso requires no learning process and is completely compatible with all aspects of Excel, Microsoft's 20-year-old spreadsheet software.

"Basically, the whole business world runs on spreadsheets," Langan said.

Currently, Microsoft has 350 million licensed Excel owners, 150 million of whom are in the business sector, Langan said. So far, eXpresso has been offering the service for a free trial period, with an option to sign on later for $80 per year, with unlimited file transfers.

Although eXpresso Corp. has launched a publicity campaign to promote the product, the service tends to sell itself, said Gavin Harvett, Vice President of Product Marketing. He said the product eliminates compatibility problems between old and new versions of Excel, and ends the need to send multiple e-mails with spreadsheet attachments.

The company was launched with a combination of venture capital funding and the profit from selling another company to an East Coast-based corporation in 2006, Langan said. It now employs 24 people -- 10 in Menlo Park and 14 in Vietnam, where the eXpresso's program code is generated. It is privately held and has five pending patents for the spreadsheet service, Harvett said.

For more information, or to sign up, visit www.eXpressoCorp.com.



E-mail Banks Albach at balbach@dailynewsgroup.com