Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) announced today that a new version of its Office software is now available for the iPad of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL). According to technology observers, the software giant should have done such decision earlier.
The version of the Office for tablets was previously offered by Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) for Windows devices. The company has a long-standing Windows-first policy particularly with Office, which is composed of Word processing, spreadsheets, and other applications. The policy was intended to maintain the dominance of Windows, which has been its biggest profit generator.
Satya Nadella, the new chief executive officer of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) broke that policy as he believes that the availability of Office and other products of the company in non-Windows devices such as the iPad of Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) is critical for the growth and profitability of the company. At present, approximately 15% of internet connected devices such as smartphones and tablets are powered by Windows.
According to the company, the subscribers of Microsoft Office 365 product will now be able to create and edit Word, PowerPoint, and Excel spreadsheet documents on their iPads and will be saved on the OneDrive cloud storage system of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT).
During an event in San Francisco today, Nadella said, “Office on the iPad and today’s announcement marks one more step in that direction. “Microsoft is focused on delivering the cloud for everyone, on every device.” He added that the software giant will provide a better picture of its innovative agenda over the next three to four weeks.
Daniel Ives, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets opined, “We believe the Office for iPad was a major positive step in the right direction and signals a strategic change at Microsoft, which could be the sign of more things to come around cloud, tablets, mobile and future Windows releases over the next 12 to 18 months. The ‘Nadella era’ at Microsoft is off to a good start.”
On the other hand, analysts at UBS Investment Research were also optimistic with the move of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). “While some Office features may not be a perfect fit on a touch screen, overall access to the Microsoft platform could be powerful, particularly in enterprise and small business.”
Meanwhile, Tim Cook, CEO of Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) welcomes the Office for the iPad in a message posted on his account on Twitter Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL).
