Microsoft is updating the very beneficial desktop software package which adds extra features for people to work simultaneously on documents organize with their e-mails and edit videos and photos to make changes.
Microsoft Office is the most popular software package worldwide for making presentations, spreadsheets and other documents, and its dominance is in no instant danger. But the company is trying to defend against a long-developing trend in which software is moving from the desktop to the Web. Google Inc. has been pushing its own free, Web-based programs for more than two years, though it has yet to gain much traction with corporations.
With Office 2010, Microsoft must decide how much software it can give away online without discouragement its profitable desktop software business. If it doesn't make the right computation, the software maker could find itself in the same position as newspapers that gave online content away and now are tense to replace print profits.
The Office 2010 Web programs will be Microsoft's first real attempt at an online office package. The office 2007 lacked tools for creating and editing files. Microsoft says the Web versions' "technical preview" will be ready in August and Microsoft will provide the web version of office 2010 free to customer. Microsoft will let companies with long-term Office licensing agreements install the online programs on their servers for no extra charge. It will launch in five versions, two for big corporation and three will be available for consumers and small business.