Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is making some of the final development touches on Office Live Workspace. According to ZDNet, Microsoft plans to release the final version of Office Live Workspace by the end of 2008. Office Live Workspace beta has grown since its introduction six months ago. Since launch of the beta, approximately 20 new features have been added to the service, such as multi-file upload, Firefox support, and an Activity Panel. And, in six months after its public availability, it has reached the 1-million-customer sign-up mark.  Office Live Workspace is a direct competitor of Google’s online office suite, Google Docs & Spreadsheets. It’s a free, web-based extension of Microsoft Office that lets people access their documents online. A part of Microsoft’s software-plus-services vision, it’s being used by consumers, schools, and universities globally.

The goal for launching the full version of the online Microsoft Office suite is by the end of 2008. Office Live Workspace has support for 11 languages and plans to support 37 by the end of the year. “The pace at which people are signing up for the beta tells us that
they are looking for ways to resolve the complexities of their work, school and home projects through a range of choices,” stated Kirk Gregersen, Director of Consumer and Small-Business Product Management for Microsoft Office. “It takes companies years to attract a strong customer base such as this. We’re excited about Office Live Workspace
growth and innovation yet to come.”

Office Live Workspace is about extending Microsoft’s existing products to the Web. The company’s goals are threefold:

Competitively, Google Docs or Apps simply don’t have enough adoption to even remotely threaten Microsoft Office. Sign up for the free service here.

Friday, September 5th, 2008 at 1:27 pm | by Kur-nia-one |