Microsoft Development Center Norway

Microsoft Development Center Norway is Microsoft's Norwegian software research and development organization in Oslo. It developed from FAST Search & Transfer ASA, a Norwegian search-technology company founded in 1997 with roots in the Department of Computer and Information Science at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. FAST initially pursued large-scale web and enterprise search, later concentrating increasingly on software for indexing, retrieving and analyzing information held inside organizations. FAST's early development was supported by academic expertise and commercial alliances. The company announced relationships with firms including Lycos, Dell and TIBCO in the late 1990s, and launched its first commercial products in 1999. It expanded rapidly during the early 2000s, securing customers and partners such as eBay, IBM, BEA, Microsoft, Telus, Elsevier and BroadVision. In 2001, FAST completed an initial public offering and became a company listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the symbol FAST. Its growth was recognized in the 2002 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 Europe ranking. The company operated across several search categories. Its Internet business included web-search properties such as AlltheWeb.com, but FAST sold that division to Overture Services in 2003; Overture was subsequently acquired by Yahoo. FAST then focused more clearly on enterprise search. The principal platform became FAST Enterprise Search Platform, or FAST ESP, a service-oriented system for collecting content, transforming it through extraction and cleansing processes, building searchable indexes and exposing search and discovery functions to applications. FAST also created specialized products for online publishing, electronic commerce, business intelligence, advertising, mobile search and other information-access use cases. The company reported thousands of implementations and maintained an international network of offices and partnerships. FAST's expansion was accompanied by substantial financial and governance difficulties. In 2007, the company disclosed that revenue-recognition practices involving unsigned memoranda of understanding had overstated expected revenue. It revised its outlook, recorded major losses, wrote off receivables and announced staff reductions. The Oslo Stock Exchange suspended trading in FAST shares in December 2007 while the company reviewed earlier accounts. Norwegian authorities later referred accounting irregularities to the police, and Økokrim searched FAST's Oslo offices in 2008. Microsoft announced an agreement to acquire FAST in January 2008. The transaction was completed in April after Microsoft obtained control of almost all FAST shares, and FAST was delisted from the Oslo Stock Exchange in May 2008. The Oslo operation became known as Microsoft Development Center Norway and continued as part of Microsoft's search and enterprise-software engineering activities. John M. Lervik left the Microsoft subsidiary in January 2009, after which Bjørn Olstad assumed leadership of the enterprise-search group. Microsoft later sold FAST's Folio and NXT businesses to Rocket Software in 2009, separating those publishing-oriented assets from the main search operation. The center's historical identity is therefore tied to enterprise information access rather than to a consumer-facing product brand. Its legacy includes search indexing, relevance, content processing, information retrieval and business-intelligence technology integrated into Microsoft's broader software portfolio. Publicly available reference material provides limited detail about its current standalone product branding, leadership structure and financial performance; those details should not be inferred from the former FAST company record.

FAST Search & Transfer was established in Norway in 1997 from work associated with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Early contributors included Professor Arne Halaas and John M. Lervik, who later became the company's chief executive. FAST announced alliances with Lycos, Dell and TIBCO in 1998 and 1999 and brought its first commercial products to market in 1999. During 2000–2003, FAST added customers and technology partners in Europe and the United States and completed an initial public offering in June 2001. The company worked with organizations including eBay, IBM, BEA, Microsoft, Telus, Elsevier and BroadVision. In 2003, it sold its Internet search division, including AlltheWeb.com, to Overture Services, allowing the company to concentrate more strongly on enterprise search. FAST introduced FAST Enterprise Search Platform in January 2004. ESP provided tools for extracting and transforming content, creating indexes and delivering search across structured and unstructured information. FAST supplemented the platform with applications for e-commerce, publishing, advertising, mobile search and business intelligence. It expanded its office network and partnerships internationally and was placed in Gartner's Leader quadrant for information-access technology during the mid-2000s. FAST also acquired Convera's RetrievalWare business in 2007. The company's rapid expansion was followed by a severe crisis in 2007. FAST disclosed that it had recognized revenue connected with unsigned memoranda of understanding and reduced its revenue expectations. It reported large operating losses, wrote off customer receivables and announced a workforce reduction of approximately 20 percent. The company also faced boardroom turmoil and scrutiny from Norwegian financial authorities. Trading in FAST shares was suspended in December 2007 while prior accounts and preliminary results were reviewed. Microsoft announced its acquisition proposal on 8 January 2008. By April, a Microsoft subsidiary controlled 97.37 percent of FAST shares, and the company was delisted from Oslo in May. The Oslo-based operation was subsequently known as Microsoft Development Center Norway. In late 2008, the Microsoft-owned search organization reportedly reduced its staff, while Lervik departed in January 2009 and Olstad took over leadership of the enterprise-search group. Microsoft sold the Folio and NXT businesses to Rocket Software in December 2009. The center's documented heritage is consequently the engineering and commercialization of enterprise search and information-access technology within Microsoft's software organization.

1. 2009Folio and NXT businesses are divested

   Microsoft sells the Folio and NXT businesses to Rocket Software.

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2. 2008Microsoft acquisition is completed

   Microsoft acquires control of FAST, which becomes the basis for Microsoft Development Center Norway; FAST is delisted from Oslo.

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3. 2007Accounting and operating crisis

   FAST discloses revenue-recognition problems, major losses, receivables write-offs and workforce reductions; trading is later suspended while accounts are reviewed.

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4. 2004FAST ESP is introduced

   FAST launches its Enterprise Search Platform for indexing, content processing and enterprise information retrieval.

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5. 2003Internet search division is sold

   FAST sells its Internet search assets, including AlltheWeb.com, to Overture Services and focuses on enterprise search.

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6. 2001FAST completes initial public offering

   FAST becomes publicly traded on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the symbol FAST.

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7. 1999First commercial product launch

   FAST begins commercial product activity after forming early strategic alliances with technology and Internet companies.

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8. 1997FAST is founded in Norway

   FAST Search & Transfer is established with roots in computer-science research at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

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A Norwegian Microsoft engineering center with historical expertise in enterprise search, indexing, information retrieval and content discovery.

• FAST Enterprise Search PlatformEnterprise search platform2004

  FAST ESP was a service-oriented platform for building searchable indexes from diverse structured and unstructured sources. It supported extraction, transformation and loading workflows, content processing, indexing and search application development. The platform served as the foundation for FAST's specialized applications in areas such as publishing, e-commerce, mobile search, business intelligence and information access.

• FAST Ad MomentumOnline advertising technology

  Ad Momentum was a FAST application focused on online advertising and ad-serving use cases. It was one of the products FAST emphasized during its 2007 attempt to concentrate resources on monetization technology.

• FAST Data CleansingData management software

  FAST Data Cleansing addressed the preparation of structured information drawn from multiple repositories. It was designed to improve the quality and consistency of data before that information was indexed or used in search and discovery applications.

• FAST ImpulseE-commerce search and discovery

  FAST Impulse was a search-derived application for online commerce and product catalogs. Built on FAST's enterprise-search technology, it supported discovery across catalog information and was part of the company's effort to package search for particular business functions.

• FAST RadarBusiness intelligence software

  FAST Radar was a dashboarding and business-intelligence application built around the company's search and information-processing capabilities. It was intended to help organizations monitor and explore information through visual summaries and searchable data.

• FAST X10 partner program

  International

  FAST expanded its channel and technology-partner ecosystem through the X10 partner program, supporting broader deployment of its enterprise-search platform and related applications.

  Outcome. The program formed part of FAST's international expansion before the Microsoft acquisition.

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• 2009Divest Folio and NXT businessesM&A

  Microsoft reviewed the portfolio inherited through FAST and separated publishing-oriented Folio and NXT assets from the core search operation.

  What changed. Microsoft sold Folio and NXT to Rocket Software.

  Aftermath. The divestiture narrowed the set of FAST-derived businesses retained within Microsoft.

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• 2008Accept Microsoft's takeover offerM&A

  FAST's board accepted Microsoft's proposal after receiving support from major institutional shareholders.

  What changed. Microsoft acquired FAST through a wholly owned subsidiary, gaining control of the Norwegian search-technology business and its international operations.

  Aftermath. FAST was delisted from the Oslo Stock Exchange and the Oslo operation became Microsoft Development Center Norway.

  Announced takeover value. Approximately US$1.2 billion (Announced 8 January 2008)

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• 2007Reduce costs after revenue shortfallStrategy

  After revising its revenue expectations and reporting major losses, FAST sought to reduce its operating cost base and restore profitability.

  What changed. The company announced a workforce reduction of approximately 20 percent and redirected attention toward monetization technology, including Ad Momentum.

  Aftermath. FAST remained under financial, accounting and governance pressure and was subsequently acquired by Microsoft.

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• 2003Concentrate on enterprise searchStrategy

  FAST's earlier business included Internet search properties and services, but the company chose to sell that division and focus its resources on enterprise information access.

  What changed. FAST sold the Internet division, including AlltheWeb.com, to Overture Services and repositioned itself around enterprise search technology.

  Aftermath. The decision made FAST ESP and related enterprise applications the center of the company's product strategy.

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• 2008Norwegian criminal investigationControversy

  Norwegian financial authorities referred suspected anomalies in FAST's accounts to police. Økokrim searched the company's Oslo offices during the investigation, which concerned possible misconduct before Microsoft's acquisition.

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• 2007Revenue-recognition and financial-reporting crisisControversy

  FAST disclosed that it had recognized revenue without signed contracts, including arrangements based on memoranda of understanding. It reduced its revenue outlook, reported substantial losses, wrote off receivables and later reviewed earlier accounts.

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• 2009John M. Lervik leaves Microsoft subsidiary

  FAST founder and former chief executive John M. Lervik resigned from the Microsoft-owned organization; Bjørn Olstad assumed responsibility for the enterprise-search group.

  Leadership change
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• 2009Microsoft sells Folio and NXT businesses to Rocket Software

  Microsoft divested FAST's Folio and NXT publishing and indexing businesses to Rocket Software.

  M&A
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• 2008Microsoft agrees to acquire FAST Search & Transfer

  Microsoft announced a takeover valued at approximately $1.2 billion, with support from FAST's largest institutional shareholders.

  M&A
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• 2008FAST shares delisted after Microsoft acquisition

  After Microsoft gained control of nearly all FAST shares, the former Norwegian public company was removed from the Oslo Stock Exchange.

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1. Microsoft Development Center Norway