Microsoft announced a number of changes to its Office for iOS apps last week: deep Dropbox integration, dedicated iPhone versions, and editing and saving features without the need for an Office 365 subscription. All of those changes seem to be paying off, at least in the short term, as TechCrunch points out the new and updated Microsoft Office apps are now on top of the App Store charts.
Currently on the iPhone App Store, Microsoft Word takes the #1 spot for Top Free iPhone Apps while Microsoft Excel ranks in at #8 and Microsoft PowerPoint follows at #10. It’s a similar scene on the iPad side with Microsoft Word at #1, Microsoft Excel at #3, and Microsoft PowerPoint at #7 on the Top Free iPad Apps list.
It probably doesn’t hurt that Apple is featuring Word, Excel, and PowerPoint as Best New Apps on the iPhone App Store under a banner promoting each apps’s availability on iPhone, but the high rankings aren’t bad considering Apple’s Pages, Numbers, and Keynote are available for free on new iPhones and iPads.
Microsoft experienced similar success earlier this year when the Word, Excel, and PowerPoint first debuted on the iPad, although those apps were heavily restricted without a paid Office 365 subscription despite being free to download. Users also had to rely on Microsoft’s OneDrive storage service for syncing documents while the new versions include integration with the popular Dropbox syncing service.
You can find the Office suite and Microsoft’s other apps on the App Store for iPhone and iPad.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
but not paying off their bills… lol
cool that the apps are doing so well….but how does this help Microsoft?
I guess it helps Microsoft by keeping people away from Google Docs and Apple’s office apps.
Yeah, but how does that even help them? Just name brand reinforcement or something? How do they make money off of this?
Surely it is as simple as the more people who have the software installed, the more that will upgrade to office 365? Allowing some editing shows off the interface in use. Office still dominates in the workplace. They are just to further exploit that.
“Yes, but don’t call me Shirley”
It helps them because some people will decide to subscribe to Office 365 to get the extra iOS app features and benefits of Office 365.
Such a shame. Microsoft should have had Office for iPad ready to go in 2010, and charged $19.99 per App. It would have become their second biggest revenue stream next to Windows licensing.
I understand how Google makes money by giving away free office apps (advertising) and how Apple does the same (hardware sales). How does Microsoft make money by giving away its Office apps for free? How long can they sustain this!n
Maybe they’ll learn from it and give away the Surface, although nobody would want it.
MS will make money on the free apps because they are not full featured. If you want all the features unlocked, you’ll need an Office 365 subscription.