Software giant Microsoft’s chief executive Steve Ballmer has said that the company’s new cloud-based office productivity suite, Office 365, would target small & medium-sized businesses in particular.

During a launch event in New York, Mr. Ballmer said, “Our focus is on the small and medium-sized group of businesses today.”

He added that the small and medium-sized group was responsible for around two-thirds of global job growth and it employed nearly 1.5 billion people around the globe.

Office 365 is an online service which offers the blend of Microsoft’s Office, collaboration and communications software. It will offer the productivity and collaboration tools needed by small & medium-sized businesses to compete with larger companies.

Mr. Ballmer said small & medium-sized businesses needed an edge without employing complex IT systems and making huge upfront capital investment. He promised that Office 365 would fulfill that need.

Several small & medium-sized businesses that have tested Office 365 in recent months, said that the new cloud-based office productivity suite provided them with extra flexibility by enabling them to focus on their main business rather than on IT.