As part of the next release of Office, Microsoft has announced that it will deliver Office Web applications – lightweight versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote – through a browser. With these new applications, people can use a browser to create, edit, and collaborate on Office documents. This provides a consistent Office experience when and where users want it, regardless of whether they are accessing their Office documents through the PC, phone, or browser.
Chris Capossela, Senior Vice President, Microsoft Business Division said “We are on a path to deliver all our technology as “software plus services,” and today is an important milestone in this journey. For more than 10 years, millions of workers have benefited from Microsoft cloud-based services, including Hosted Exchange, Outlook Web Access and Live Meeting. Earlier this year, we announced Microsoft Online, which businesses such as Coca-Cola Enterprises, Blockbuster, and Energizer are using to access Exchange and SharePoint over the Web. Last month, more than 1 million people turned to Office Live Workspace for sharing and collaborating over the Internet.
With this development, people can benefit from Office as a service on their browser, as a downloadable application on their phone, and as software on their PCs. This is the kind of flexibility that our software plus services approach makes possible, and is helping us deliver the kind of innovation that businesses and consumers expect from Microsoft.”
Microsoft will deliver Office Web applications to consumers through Office Live, which is a consumer service with both ad-funded and subscription offerings. For business customers, they will offer Office Web applications as a hosted subscription service and through existing volume licensing agreements.
ITNewsAfrica.com
