Hadrons have collided, pumuti na ang uwak sa Lanao, and now Microsoft is offering Office Apps for free.
Yes, you read it right. You don’t need a subscription to Office 365 and you don’t need to look for document editing alternatives anymore as the alpha has entered the freeware playing field. This comes soon after Microsoft has announced its partnership with the cloud-storage company Dropbox, leading to an integration of systems that allows users to utilize Office and store files in Dropbox without spending for a single centavo.
iPhone and iPad users can now enjoy the full versions of the premium software, while Android tablet users can sign up for the preview and get the full versions in 2015. This move is a big step for Microsoft, who has always charged customers for the usage of Office.
In an interview with The Verge, Microsoft’s Head of Office Marketing Michael Atalla explains their position, “It’s not a total strategic shift, as much as of an extension of existing strategy. We’re taking the same user experience we provided online to the native apps of iOS and Android. We want to make sure that our customers can be productive across all the devices they have.”
With a lot of competition in the Apple Store and the Play Store, it’s not surprising that Microsoft has decided to make such a bold move, considering that Office is one of the company’s greatest cash cows. But as Microsoft wants you to “realize the full value of Office with a subscription” (read: they still want to you download Office 365 for premium offerings), it’s probably their smartest tactic yet.
