In Buying Mint, Intuit Looks to Revitalize

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A frequent traveler might get a pitch for an airline-rewards credit card, while someone who buys lots of groceries and gas would see offers for cards that help them save on those purchases.

That's the "savings engine" technology Intuit coveted. In addition to the Mint.com Web site, Intuit plans to rewrite its Quicken Online software to be powered by Mint's technology. "The desktop version of Quicken isn't going anywhere any time soon," says Patzer. But Intuit will position the Quicken Online site as a place to which desktop Quicken users can go to check on their investment portfolios or perform other straightforward tasks during the day while feeling secure that the bulk of their financial data is stored on a PC. "Not everything goes up into the cloud," says Patzer.

TurboTax Will Incorporate Mint's Tech

A new version of Quicken for PCs is due in October or early November, around the time Microsoft (MSFT) launches its Windows 7 operating system. A long delayed new system for Apple's (AAPL) Mac is due out next year. Still, Dan Maurer, Intuit senior vice-president, acknowledges that it's getting tougher to keep consumers paying for desktop software. Last year, Microsoft discontinued its PC personal finance software, Money.

Shares of Intuit closed up 2¢ on Sept. 14, at 27.86. So far in 2009, Intuit's stock is up about 17%, compared with a 32% gain for the Nasdaq Composite Index. Sales fell slightly during Intuit's fourth quarter that ended July 31, to $475.8 million, and the company posted a net loss of $70.1 million.

Intuit says Mint's technology can pay dividends in other areas beside personal finance. Starting with its TurboTax products for the 2010 tax year, the company plans to fold in Mint technology that can examine taxpayers' earnings statements to automatically extract expenses. "Half your taxes could be done without asking a series of questions," Maurer says. The company also plans to export Mint technology to its QuickBooks products for small business customers and to software it sells small banks for online banking Web sites.

In the short term, Intuit will need to work hard to make sure consumers understand that both Mint.com and the free online Quicken services have value. "When you have two very powerful brands, you don't want to get rid of either of them immediately," says Patzer.

Ricadela is a writer for BusinessWeek in Silicon Valley. With Lauren Young in New York

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