Despite growing interest in so-called cloud computing, Google's
online productivity suite is little threat to Microsoft's venerable
Office franchise, according to at least one market watcher.
And with Microsoft's inclusion of free, Internet-based versions
of Word, PowerPoint, and Excel in Office 2010 under the banner of
Office Web, users will have even less reason to switch to Google
Docs (also free to consumers), says Forrester's JP Gownder.
"Office Web apps are designed explicitly to help consumers
leverage the power of the cloud … while also not
cannibalizing sales of the client program," wrote Gownder.
Invariably, some reviews will compare Google Docs and Office Web
apps head to head as if they were meant to be comparable offerings.
This is a mistake," wrote Gownder.
Office Web Apps are tailored specifically for the online
environment. For instance, the Office Web version of PowerPoint
does not include some of the desktop version's high-performance
video editing tools.
The Web apps, on the other hand, offer features not found on the
desktop versions, such as tools that let users embed tags into
documents and post them on blogs.
"Office Web apps are a complement to the client program," wrote
Gownder.
While Google Docs may be more robust than Office Web, Google's
offering pales when compared to the full, desktop version of
Office, said Gownder. "In some ways, the Office versus Google Docs
debate doesn't merit a lot of consideration," said Gownder.
Indeed, Gownder cited a recent Forrester survey that showed that
only about 4 percent of U.S. online consumers use Google Docs,
while 67 percent of consumers use Office at home. "It's still
no competition," said Gownder.
He added that online software such as Google Docs isn't likely
to displace desktop-based apps any time soon because browser-based
apps typically offer limited functionality, while the PC power
needed to run client software "is plentiful and cheap."
Microsoft released Office 2010 for general sale earlier this
week.
The boxed, Professional edition of Office 2010 is priced at USD
499, while the download is USD 349. There's also significant
price discrepancies between boxed and download delivery for other
versions as well. For the Home & Student version, it's USD
149 vs USD 119. For Home & Business, it's USD 279 vs USD
199.