Microsoft has sent out an email to the press announcing that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella will be hosting a press event on March 27th in San Francisco, something we learned just last week. Nadella is set to speak about “the intersection of cloud and mobile computing” and rumors are running wild that we may be seeing the debut of Office for iPad during this press event.
Microsoft is expected to take the wraps off an Office for iPad app, which would require an Office 365 subscription to edit and create Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files. The app itself is expected to be free of charge. The app is rumored to be similar to the way Office Mobile for iPhone works.
So why does the iPad get a touch-enabled version of Office before Windows? It all has to do with what makes sense economically for Microsoft. “We are working on touch-first enabled versions of our core Office applications (including Word, Excel and PowerPoint). We will bring these apps to Windows devices and also other devices like the iPad in ways that meet our customers’ needs and in ways that make sense economically for Microsoft,” a Microsoft spokesperson told WinBeta.
The event takes place 10AM PST on Thursday, March 27th, in San Francisco. Microsoft will also have a live webcast of the press event, available through the Microsoft News Center (also embedded below for your viewing pleasure). An on-demand video of the event will be made available afterwards.
