Take that, Microsoft! Google brings its version of Microsoft Office to the public, for free

In what could be big blow to Microsoft, Google is bringing its version of the Microsoft Office productivity suite to the masses - for free.

 

Google announced its Quickoffice suite will be free for everyone, so they can open and edit Microsoft Office documents across their devices.

 

"Quickoffice also integrates seamlessly with Google Drive storage so you can safely access your files from anywhere. And while the easiest thing to do is simply convert your old files to Google Docs, Sheets and Slides, Quickoffice gives you another way to work with people who haven’t gone Google yet," VP for engineering Alan Warren said in a blog post.

 

Warren said users can get the new free Quickoffice app for Android and iOS phones and tablets on Google Play and in the App Store.

 

All a user has to do is to sign into his or her Google Account to start editing Microsoft Office documents, spreadsheets and presentations on mobile, he added.

 

Warren also cited new features, including a refreshed icon, the ability to create .ZIP folders, and view charts in Excel and PowerPoint files.

 

"Plus, the new app works across devices so you don’t have to worry about installing separate versions anymore when you go from using your phone to editing on your tablet," he added. 

 

Meanwhile, Warren said those who sign into their Google Account from the new Quickoffice app for Android or iOS by September 26 can get an extra 10GB of Google Drive storage for two years.

 

Warren also said previous versions of Quickoffice have been removed from Google Play and the App Store.

 

On the other hand, he said users who have the Quickoffice for Google Apps for Business app will get an update notification to upgrade to this new version.

 

A separate report on The Next Web said Google stopped offering Google Apps for free in December 2002, with the premium version still costing $50 per user, per year.

 

But Google then released Quickoffice for iPad, making it exclusively available to its Apps customers for free.

 

In April, it followed this up with free Android and iPhone versions for Apps customers.

 

"We’ve noted multiple times that this likely wasn’t a coincidence: these 'free' apps made Google Apps for Business more attractive to organizations. Yet now it seems that this extra frosting has been removed, and Google’s war against Microsoft Office has hit another level. Anyone can use the apps, whether they pay for Google Apps or not," it added.

 

The Next Web added Microsoft may have "shot itself in the foot" even if it released Office Mobile for iOS in June and Office Mobile for Android in July - but both needed an Office 365 subscription.

 

"In other words, Microsoft matched Google’s deal. Now Google has hit back and undercut Microsoft once again, and this blow might be the biggest yet," it said.  — ELR, GMA News