Under the leadership of Satya Nadella, one can slowly, but surely see Microsoft transforming itself from a primarily PC-centric software maker to a cross-platform cloud-based player. As an important part of its metamorphosis, the world’s largest software maker has introduced components of one of its most widely used software, MS Office to the Android mobile platform as apps. The new apps can be downloaded for free from the Google PlayStore and are available with the names Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint.
Microsoft Office has been available for Apple tablets and phones for some time now, and a pre-launch test release was also made available to a bunch of Android smartphone users some time back. The software was also available for download to the users of Android tablets, though the introduction of the apps to Android smartphone platform completes the transformation of Office from a software suite to an application that can be used across devices and OS platforms.
The apps appear as free software on the PlayStore, which they actually are for most part, allowing users to create and edit documents on the go. There is a small catch here, though. To unlock the full mobile features you need to buy an annual subscription to Office 365. Though the free version is quite feature-rich by itself, allowing you to do things like creating PowerPoint slide shows and present them wirelessly with your mobile device, it makes available some features only to the premium users. Also, it would be too optimistic to believe that you can create professionally designed presentations from the mobile phone itself. So in a way, Microsoft is still expecting you to buy its software, even if the mobile-only version is free.
Microsoft is hoping that people wouldn’t mind paying for Office 365 if they can use the cloud versions of Outlook, Word and PowerPoint on their Macs or PCs. This is even more valid for corporate users who would be able to make use of the service from their corporate as well as personal devices.
[blockquote cite=”Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO” type=”left”]It’s about giving Office users the same experience on any device they want to use. Our commitment going forward is to make sure we drive Office 365 everywhere. That means the web, tablets, all phones and PCs[/blockquote]
According to Ebun Onagoruwa, a Microsoft product manager “the goal of these apps is to make sure that as people think about working, creating and doing, they think of Office as the default”
To ensure that people start using the new apps as the default, like they have been, on their desktops for years, Microsoft has tied up with more than 30 OEMs such as Samsung, Sony and many more, to pre-load these apps on Android devices. What that means is you wouldn’t need a WPS Office, or any other third party app to open the MS Word documents anymore. A Word document should always open in MS Word, even on a mobile, and that’s how it’s going to be – finally!
