H-P, Microsoft Join In Computer Venture

Hewlett-Packard Co. plans an alliance with Microsoft Corp. to produce a new line of personal computers for small businesses.

The new HP computers, called the Hewlett-Packard and Microsoft Small Business Center, will come with Microsoft business productivity and reference applications. The companies were scheduled to announce the alliance today.

The six models of HP’s Vectra 500 machines are aimed at the growing number of small businesses, which the federal government defines as having 500 or fewer employees. Such businesses generally don’t have the employees to maintain networks of computers commonly used by larger companies.

“The small business market is growing tremendously, and these aggressive, astute business people want the benefits of PC power without the complexity of corporate systems,” said Jaques Clay, general manager of HP’s personal computer division in Grenoble, France.

The new PCs include built-in software that lets HP technical support staff remotely diagnose and fix problems.