Think you are dreaming? No, you are not. This is the next game played by Microsoft, where they are providing their Office app absolutely free for Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.office.officehub&hl=en), iPhone and iPad users.
You must be thinking that no one even gives you a free penny in today’s world, then why did Microsoft decide to go all altruistic while they could make millions by selling this app? The equation is pretty simple. Microsoft aims for a bigger number of users for their Office app, and there is no better way to acquire this than to providing this app for free. Being reliable and of good reputation, this app will be able to garner more user base than ever before.
This new piece of information followed the unplanned partnership between Microsoft and Dropbox that brings these two entities closer, and will enable users to edit, store and sync documents between their Office and Dropbox accounts. There was confirmation about Office being already available for iPad, and sources have revealed that Microsoft is releasing an iPhone app. Also, they have already released the preview of Office for Android tablets.
From today onwards, you do not need the Office 365 subscription in order to edit or store documents in cloud. You can simply download the Office app, and edit documents and save them over Dropbox. Everything will be integrated within the app, and all tasks will be done with minimal effort from your end.
While many are speculating the true motive behind this move, officials simply shrugged off the matter by saying that they are not bringing about a revolutionary change to their system. Office Online was free anyway, and they are simply bringing that experience to the users of Android and iOS, and hoping that they would be able to use the service from not only their computer, but from any other mobile devices that they currently use.
However, Microsoft isn’t providing the app for free for users of OneDrive for Business or Dropbox for business. These users still need Office 365 subscription to be able to avail the services, most of which are premium.
By providing the app for free, Microsoft has ensured that there is minimum competition when it comes to using similar apps, and from what we see, competitors indeed have to fight a lot to topple what Microsoft is building.
Source: The Verge
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