WHSmith has moved into business software - but you won't be seeing spreadsheets on the magazine racks in the immediate future.

The giant retailer has come to an agreement with Softeam, one of the USA's largest software distributors. The two companies have formed WHS Softeam as a business software distribution group.

US software from Micropro, Ashton Tate and Peachtree will be made available to selected dealers, and a wide range of popular micros will be supported, including the IBM PC, DEC Rainbow, and Epson HX20, Fujitsu, about to launch its FM7 and FM16 micros, has also come into the arrangement.

This will mean that buyers of the new machines should not have to wait too long for software. Fujitsu hopes that there will be a "Wealth of software available from the word go" for its new machines.

The move could mean a greater and faster availability of business software, given Softeam's technical expertise in adapting software for specific machines (particularly to IBM-"compatible" machines) and the nationwide distribution facilities of WHSmith.