Microsoft Responds To Google With Free Online Office Programs
Posted on: Monday, 13 July 2009, 13:30 CDT
In a response to Google’s move toward offering free software as services on the Internet, Microsoft announced it would release a free version of its dominant Office software that users can access over the Web, Reuters reported.
Microsoft will release a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation software and a note-taking program with the same look and feel of their counterparts in the Office suites, which it sells for personal computers.
The so-called "in the cloud" competition between Microsoft and Google is intensifying, as the Internet search leader announced plans last week to challenge Windows with a free operating system.
In June, Microsoft introduced a new search engine called ‘Bing,’ that has taken a small amount of market share from Google.
However, Microsoft’s decision to give away a free version of Office could hurt the company’s top-selling and most profitable business unit, as the home version of Office sells for $150 and includes the four programs the company will now make available for nothing.
Sheri McLeish, an analyst with Forrester Research, said Microsoft is now in a tough spot.
“Their competition isn't just undercutting them. They are giving away the competitive product," she said.
Microsoft Office alone was responsible for an operating profit of $9.3 billion on sales of $14.3 billion in the first three quarters of the software maker's current fiscal year.
Microsoft is expected to overtake Google in the market as the hundreds of millions of people who use Office will surely flock to try out the Internet version, McLeish said. But the software maker will attempt to lead those users to its ad-supported websites, including the Bing search engine.
Bing's early signs of success suggest Microsoft may be rounding the corner in efforts to turn around its money-losing Internet division, according to some analysts.
The free service won’t be available until Microsoft starts selling Office 2010 -- it’s next major release of the product -- sometime in the first half of next year.
Business partners were given an early look at the software during the opening of a Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans.
However, tens of thousands of testers will be getting their hands on an early release of the software fairly soon.
The free Web version will provide "a very rich experience" and probably have more functionality than Google, according to company spokeswoman Janice Kapner.
Microsoft also plans two other Internet versions of Office for businesses.
Analyst Matt Rosoff of Directions On Microsoft, a private firm that tracks the Redmond, Washington-based technology firm, said the fact that Microsoft is developing the free service at all is a response to Google.
"This is a move that they probably wouldn't have made if they didn't have to, but there is enough competition bubbling up that they thought they needed a response," he said.
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Source: redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports
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User Comments (1)
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Posted by Ado on 07/16/2009, 09:13 I really don’t like the new ribbon interface. Microsoft is shooting themselfs in the foot over this new creation. I still prefer free alternative office suites. There is no reason anymore to pay for an office suite these days. They have all the functionality that any general user may need. And to make things even better for alternative office suites is that they have not converted their interfaces to a ribbon mess. I tend to favour SSuite Office’s free office suites. They have a whole range of office suites that are free for download, and their interfaces are no more than 3 levels deep. So you don’t need to hunt for that elusive function you need. Their software also don’t need to run on Java or .NET, so it makes the software very small and efficient. http://www.ssuitesoft.com/index.htm |
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