Microsoft has announced that their newest edition of their ever-popular office software package Office 2019 will only be available to users of Windows 10. The controversial move seems to be an attempt to move business users over to Windows 10 to keep up with the latest developments in the Office platform.
Office 2019 for Windows 10 only
An update by Microsoft on the 1st of February noted that Office 2019 will arrive in the 2nd half of 2018. They also announced as part of their changes that support for Office 2019 will be shorter than usual. They insisted that it will receive the usual 5 years of standard support, but extended support will be shortened from 5 years to 2 years. That means that Office 2019 will expire on October 10th 2025, which also happens to be the same day that Office 2016 will also stop receiving support.
Microsoft has insisted that-
“As the pace of change accelerates, it has become imperative to move our software to a more modern cadence.”
But users will be annoyed as it appears Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2018 will receive 5 years of extended support. Microsoft has also opted to stop Office 365 ProPlus running on anything other than Windows 10 semi-annual channel. It plans to only sync it with Windows 10 for security. Earlier it provided Office 365 on multiple platforms and the new changes would affect many business users.
The Redmond giant is keen to move everyone to Windows 10. The potential to streamline their business model will not be lost on them. They are now beginning to stop users of older software from accessing more modern innovations and will continue to try and get users over to its most recent version of the world’s favorite operating system. The potential cost savings are huge and it is clearly the reason that Microsoft wants to get everyone on to the same software package. It is not yet clear how the industry will react to the news.
