Microsoft Brings the Full Weight of Office Productivity to the Cloud with Office 365

Microsoft Brings the Full Weight of Office Productivity to the Cloud with Office 365

20 October, 2010 | Sydney, Australia

Microsoft Australia today announced Office 365, the company’s next generation in cloud productivity that will bring together Office, SharePoint, Exchange and Lync online in a cloud service. Due to be available in Australia next year, Office 365 will provide businesses of all sizes with a greater choice in how to deploy the latest productivity software from Microsoft – on the desktop or online through the cloud. Office 365 will make it easier for businesses to work from anywhere they have an internet connection, on a range of different devices, while simply and securely collaborating with others inside and outside their organisation.

Office 365 will be delivered to Australian businesses by Microsoft through its partners, including Telstra via the T-Suite® platform, as well as through Enterprise Agreements direct from Microsoft. Businesses will be able to take advantage of low cost per user, per month prices which are due to be announced prior to launch.

Office 365 is built on years of experience in delivering industry-leading business cloud services ranging from the first browser-based e-mail to today’s Microsoft Online Services (MOS), Office Live Small Business and Live@edu. Moving to the cloud with Office 365 means businesses won’t have to change the way they work, as Office 365 is compatible with the most popular browsers, smartphones and desktop applications already in use today.

“Office 365 is the best of everything we know about productivity, all in a single, easy to access, affordable cloud service,” said Kelly Innis, Product Marketing Manager, Microsoft Online Services at Microsoft Australia. “Just as Office defines desktop productivity for millions around the world, Office 365 will define cloud productivity for the next generation. With Office 365, even the smallest of businesses can get the latest and greatest editions of Microsoft’s enterprise-calibre software and services for the first time, including the most important features and functionality of Office 2010.”

Small businesses, professionals and small companies with fewer than 25 employees can be up and running on Office 365 with Office Web Apps, Exchange, SharePoint, Lync and an external Web site in just 15 minutes.

Office 365 for enterprises include an array of choices, with the option to get Office Professional Plus desktop software on a pay-as-you go basis, for the first time ever. Organisations can get Office Professional Plus along with e-mail, voicemail, enterprise social networking, instant messaging, Web portals, extranets, voice and video conferencing, web conferencing, 24/7 phone support, on-premises licenses and more.

Marcus Bartram, Director Cloud Marketing, Telstra Business, said: “Together with Microsoft, we’re allowing businesses to focus on what they do best, knowing that their technology is taken care of. Small to medium businesses will be able to access applications previously only accessible to larger businesses via T-Suite, and stay current with the latest innovations that can deliver business improvements. We will also be able to offer the majority of our Telstra Business customers the added convenience of having this and all their Telstra services billed as one.”

Microsoft and its partners, including Telstra, promise to customers that Office 365 will reliably deliver 99.9% scheduled uptime in a financially backed Service Level Agreement guarantee as well as being ISO 27001 SAS70-compliant security.

With Office 365, existing customers of MOS will get upgraded versions of SharePoint, Exchange and Lync; new administration controls; and the ability to more easily sign-in and share content security with partners.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realise their full potential. For more information please visit Microsoft Australia.

For further information, or to arrange an interview, please contact:
For Microsoft:
Simon Gomes
Howorth Communications
02 8281 3836 / 0466 098 031
[email protected]

For Telstra:
Craig Regan
Lighthouse Communications Group
02 9262 3868 / 0408 448 527
[email protected]

Tags: Office 365Cloud, Telstra, productivity

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