Small business accounting software tends to be localised by country such as Quickbooks (USA), MYOB (Australia) or bits of Sage (notably in the UK).
The reason for country-specific software was that this stuff arose during the 1980s (which was a big period of tax reform globally) and the localisation was important for compliance. Moreover, that was a different world - there was no reason to expect that (say) Intuit would have the local knowledge to succeed in Australia let alone France. [Question: could you imagine programming French tax law into an accounting package written in California now? Could you imagine doing it pre-internet?]
Small business software is a much more important business outside the United States than inside. Penetration in Australia for instance is over 70 percent (these are for businesses with say 5-10 staff). In the US it is likely around 20-30 percent. The Australian penetration rate is probably around the non-US OECD average.
I am pretty sure the reason for the high-non-US penetration is tax compliance. The US (almost alone) does not have a value-added tax. VATs are beautifully simple taxes, relatively easy to comply with and that raise revenue very efficiently. But they turn almost every small business into a tax collector. Even an architect or a small consulting firm collects value added tax - and it does so on behalf of other people.
Tax authorities get moderately upset if you do not pay tax you yourself owe to them. They become vehemently angry if you withhold tax on behalf of other people and you don't pay it to them. When you become a tax collector your relationship with the tax authority changes. Being compliant and being seen to be compliant becomes a business necessity.
Small business accounting software helps that - indeed it makes it automatic. And that is why in countries with value added taxes small business accounting software is pervasive.
And because small business accounting software was - from inception - about tax compliance it was necessarily highly localised. When these programs arose in the 1980s computer space was limited (you really wouldn't want a global system for your small business) and cross-border compliance was an unrealistic programming goal.
The reason for country-specific software was that this stuff arose during the 1980s (which was a big period of tax reform globally) and the localisation was important for compliance. Moreover, that was a different world - there was no reason to expect that (say) Intuit would have the local knowledge to succeed in Australia let alone France. [Question: could you imagine programming French tax law into an accounting package written in California now? Could you imagine doing it pre-internet?]
Small business software is a much more important business outside the United States than inside. Penetration in Australia for instance is over 70 percent (these are for businesses with say 5-10 staff). In the US it is likely around 20-30 percent. The Australian penetration rate is probably around the non-US OECD average.
I am pretty sure the reason for the high-non-US penetration is tax compliance. The US (almost alone) does not have a value-added tax. VATs are beautifully simple taxes, relatively easy to comply with and that raise revenue very efficiently. But they turn almost every small business into a tax collector. Even an architect or a small consulting firm collects value added tax - and it does so on behalf of other people.
Tax authorities get moderately upset if you do not pay tax you yourself owe to them. They become vehemently angry if you withhold tax on behalf of other people and you don't pay it to them. When you become a tax collector your relationship with the tax authority changes. Being compliant and being seen to be compliant becomes a business necessity.
Small business accounting software helps that - indeed it makes it automatic. And that is why in countries with value added taxes small business accounting software is pervasive.
And because small business accounting software was - from inception - about tax compliance it was necessarily highly localised. When these programs arose in the 1980s computer space was limited (you really wouldn't want a global system for your small business) and cross-border compliance was an unrealistic programming goal.
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