28 June 2011 | Author: N. Hamilton Media copywriter
Microsoft's taking to the cloud in a bid to curb corporate defections from Microsoft Office to rival cloud-based services.
According to the New York Times, cloud-computing has become Microsoft's top priority amid fears that corporations are quickly swapping Redmond's one-time untouchables - Excel, Word, PowerPoint and OutLook - for Google's cloud-based alternatives.
Microsoft is said to be so keen to halt defections from its Office software - a $20 billion a year profit-maker - that it's brought forward the release of Office 365, a cloud-based version of the firm's e-mail, spreadsheet, presentation and word-processing programs.
Steve Ballmer is expected to launch the company's new cloud-offering, to much fanfare, later today.
And analysts have said the move's a real deal-breaker for Redmond, as Microsoft could risk driving users to Google if it fails to fully embrace cloud computing in an attempt to avoid cannibalising Office software - the firm's single biggest money-spinner.
"If Microsoft stumbles, it really opens the door to Google," Matt Cain, a Gartner analyst, told the publication. "It's a tremendous long-term threat to Microsoft and its Office franchise."
Google's said it's un-phased by the release of Office 365, especially as the search firm has clocked-up 30 million active Google Apps users.
The Mountain View giant has also revealed that renewal rates for Google Apps are above 90 per cent, with corporate renewal rates close to 100 per cent.
Though Google has yet to disclose how many corporations have agreed to pay a Google Apps subscription fee of $50 per user per year, the firm is thought to be gaining momentum as federal agencies, a state and a large publisher have each recently switched to Google Apps.
David Girouard, president of Google's enterprise division, told the NYT: "This [the release of Office 365] is recognition that our business is for real. We've really helped move the needle in the marketplace."
Microsoft looks to cloud to curb corporate defections from Office software
Microsoft's taking to the cloud in a bid to curb corporate defections from Microsoft Office to rival cloud-based services. According to the New York Times, cloud-computing has become Microsoft's top priority amid fears that corporations are quickly swapping Redmond's one-time untouchables - Excel, Word, PowerPoint and OutLook - for Google's cloud-based alternatives.
Microsoft is said to be so keen to halt defections from its Office software - a $20 billion a year profit-maker - that it's brought forward the release of Office 365, a cloud-based version of the firm's e-mail, spreadsheet, presentation and word-processing programs.
Steve Ballmer is expected to launch the company's new cloud-offering, to much fanfare, later today.
And analysts have said the move's a real deal-breaker for Redmond, as Microsoft could risk driving users to Google if it fails to fully embrace cloud computing in an attempt to avoid cannibalising Office software - the firm's single biggest money-spinner.
"If Microsoft stumbles, it really opens the door to Google," Matt Cain, a Gartner analyst, told the publication. "It's a tremendous long-term threat to Microsoft and its Office franchise."
Google's said it's un-phased by the release of Office 365, especially as the search firm has clocked-up 30 million active Google Apps users.
The Mountain View giant has also revealed that renewal rates for Google Apps are above 90 per cent, with corporate renewal rates close to 100 per cent.
Though Google has yet to disclose how many corporations have agreed to pay a Google Apps subscription fee of $50 per user per year, the firm is thought to be gaining momentum as federal agencies, a state and a large publisher have each recently switched to Google Apps.
David Girouard, president of Google's enterprise division, told the NYT: "This [the release of Office 365] is recognition that our business is for real. We've really helped move the needle in the marketplace."
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