Microsoft’s trump card against Apple(AAPL) is a suite of productivity software aptly named Office.
In my own research, more than half of the corporations my employees have surveyed are reluctant to deploy Apple iPad widely because it does not run Microsoft Office natively. Our research also shows that about 20% of consumers have been reluctant to buy iPad because it does not run Office.
Office is so ubiquitous in the corporate world that Microsoft’s new Surface tablets may gain traction not because they are better than iPad, but because they run Office.
There are several excellent competing apps that run well on iPads and iPhones. However, when work routine is centered around Office, who needs the hassle of another app and all sorts of synchronization problems.
The allure of Office on a mobile device is so powerful that I may buy Microsoft Surface as soon as it becomes available. This is the case even though I have no attraction for the physical keyboard offered in Surface. I have even considered switching to theNokia (NOK) Lumia phone because it comes pre-loaded with Office.
Certainly some will argue with my basic premise as there are several very good ways to get around non-availability of Office in iPhone and iPad. But when every minute is precious, it does make sense to have Office running natively on mobile devices…Read more at Forbes
