Microsoft announced that it will make its Office suite, free of charge for phones and tablets with screens smaller than 9 inches. The move is primarily designed to help boost the company’s market share and get Office onto as many devices as possible
Free Office for Devices under 10 inches
Corporate vice president for the Office 365 Client Apps and Services team Kirk Koenigsbauer in a blog post titled ‘Mobile versus professional— thoughts on the Office businesses wrote,
“Currently, we are also using screen size to delineate between professional and personal use. Based on our research, we are classifying anything with a screen size of 10.1 inches or less as a true mobile device: You’re probably using it on the go, when it’s not practical to use a larger computing device such as a PC or a Mac. You probably aren’t using a mouse or a keyboard, instead navigating via touch interface. It’s probably not a “pro” category tablet that is used for design or presentations.”
Microsoft believes that 10.1 inches is the dividing line between a “personal” and “professional” experience. Those adopting subscription models need the reliability and security of paid apps, while “personal” users are more interested in free.
Microsoft is tuning Office software, so it that appears to be even better on different devices and adapts well to device trends that are shaping new experiences.
