VISION HRM BUYS SERENIC: Nonprofit accounting software maker Serenic Software has been acquired by Vision HRM, a Canadian company, in a deal that is more of a merger than a purchase.
Vision HRM, based in Edmonton, Alberta, paid just over $1 million (C$1.4 million) for Serenic, which markets the Serenic Navigator line. Vision HRM, which is traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange, is tendering 4 million shares of stock. However, the Serenic shareholders would own about a third of the combined company, noted Dwayne Kushniruk, founder and chairman of Vision HRM. Serenic chief executive Jay Malik will become president, chief executive officer and director.
Vision HRM took over North American distribution of Vision Pay, payroll software for Navision users, in 2001.
— Robert W. Scott
ATX’S NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR ACCOUNTANTS: ATX, a maker of accountant-centric software and content, is offering two business-user versions of its Total Accounting Office called Total Command and Cash Command, and plans to launch a reseller program for the new products.
TAO, powered by accounting software maker AccTrak21, provides accounting capabilities, as well as online banking, customer relationship management and practice management.
Total Command has an integrated series of financial modules that include general ledger, AR and AP, payroll, cash management, CRM, document management, and BusinessSmarts analytics components. Total Command is geared toward single users, small businesses and middle-market enterprises. Cash Command is designed for small business and has tools to help small business owners keep daily receipts and disbursement transactions running. Cash Command costs $200 for a single-user license and $300 for a multi-user license, while Total Command starts at $2,000 for up to three users.
ATX’s reseller plan will consist of three tiers: Silver, Gold and Platinum. The program’s margins will begin at 10 percent.
— Carly Lombardo-Bohach
BEST RESELLER SWK BOUGHT BY TECH SPIN-OFF: Trey Resources Inc., a recent spin-off from voice and speech recognition technology maker iVoice Inc., has purchased Best Software reseller and Accounting Today Technology Pacesetter SWK Inc. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, other than that SWK is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Trey.
Trey has a $10 million financing facility that went public as a spin-off from iVoice in February 2004. The company claims it intends to use this facility to expand and acquire other companies.
The two firms only began formal discussions back in late February, though SWK chief executive Jeffrey Roth and Trey chief executive Mark Meller have known each other for some time.
In addition, SWK expects its staff of 16 to grow over the next year as the firm engages in new offerings, particularly for its latest venture. SWK, through a joint venture with bar code technology vendor Scanco LLC, has developed RF Barcode Master for Mapadoc — SWK’s proprietary electronic data exchange solution for MAS 90 and MAS 200. RF Barcode Master for Mapadoc is designed to enable users to send employees transaction processing data via wireless devices.
ACCOUNTANTS, OTHER PROS GET THEIR OWN DOMAIN: Accredited Internet domain registrar EnCirca Inc. (
Initially, the .pro domain will only be available to CPAs, doctors and lawyers, but there are no restrictions on the strings that can be registered. Registrants are not limited to just the name of their practice. In addition, they can register any generic string they wish.
Each live .pro domain registration will include a digital certificate for authenticating communications and transactions. Professionals must also undergo a verification process to validate their eligibility for using a .pro name extension.
