SAN FRANCISCO: Microsoft unveiled a new version of its Office suite
tailored for tablets and other touchscreen devices, in the company's
largest-ever overhaul of the workplace software it relies on for much of
its profit.
The revamped Office, touted by Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer on Monday as the most ambitious version so far, takes advantage of cloud computing and is designed for use with the upcoming Windows 8 operating system.
It makes use of cloud computing by storing documents and settings on the Internet by default, and is compatible with touch screens widely used in tablets. It also incorporates Skype, the video-calling service Microsoft bought for $8.5 billion in 2011.
The latest version of Office comes as Apple Inc and Google Inc make inroads into the workplace, long Microsoft's stronghold. Office is Microsoft's single-biggest profit driver.
"The Office that we'll talk about and show you today is the first round of Office that's designed from the get-go to be a service," Ballmer said at a news conference. "This is the most ambitious release of Microsoft Office that we've ever done."
Microsoft has a lot riding on the 15th version of Office. Windows is one of the world's biggest computing platforms, and the Office applications -- Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other tools -- are used by more than 1 billion people around the world.
The world's largest software company has been slow to adapt to a boom in mobile devices and cloud computing.
Microsoft is hoping corporate IT managers will fork over the cash to upgrade internal software just when global tech spending is looking shakier than it has in years. The 2013 picture is uncertain but budgets are expected to tighten, with Europe's economic crisis and a deceleration in the Chinese economy.
The revamped Office, touted by Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer on Monday as the most ambitious version so far, takes advantage of cloud computing and is designed for use with the upcoming Windows 8 operating system.
It makes use of cloud computing by storing documents and settings on the Internet by default, and is compatible with touch screens widely used in tablets. It also incorporates Skype, the video-calling service Microsoft bought for $8.5 billion in 2011.
The latest version of Office comes as Apple Inc and Google Inc make inroads into the workplace, long Microsoft's stronghold. Office is Microsoft's single-biggest profit driver.
"The Office that we'll talk about and show you today is the first round of Office that's designed from the get-go to be a service," Ballmer said at a news conference. "This is the most ambitious release of Microsoft Office that we've ever done."
Microsoft has a lot riding on the 15th version of Office. Windows is one of the world's biggest computing platforms, and the Office applications -- Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other tools -- are used by more than 1 billion people around the world.
The world's largest software company has been slow to adapt to a boom in mobile devices and cloud computing.
Microsoft is hoping corporate IT managers will fork over the cash to upgrade internal software just when global tech spending is looking shakier than it has in years. The 2013 picture is uncertain but budgets are expected to tighten, with Europe's economic crisis and a deceleration in the Chinese economy.
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