Office Execs: Google Not a Threat

Executives in Microsoft's Office division seem to be discounting any possible threat to their business from Google's Web-based productivity software, according to Reuters. Antoine Leblond, co-head of the Office division, says the applications are not suitable for corporate use.

Google in recent months has turned out a host of applications that rival features within Microsoft Office. They include word processing and spreadsheet applications, along with calendaring and corporate e-mail functionality.

While CEO Eric Schmidt has told the media that the company is not looking to compete with Office, many industry analysts believe otherwise. Google does not charge for its services, which make the offering even more appealing.

However, Leblond says that while free software may be attractive, other free alternatives have been around for a long time and have never gained traction. "It turns out free doesn't trump the software doing what people need it to do," he told Reuters.

Additionally, Leblond and the company have a different philosophy when it comes to Web-based services. While Google and others believe that online software would eventually replace desktop software, Microsoft believes the future is in software that works with a Web-based counterpart.

Office 2007 will be released to business customers at the end of this month, with a consumer release scheduled for January 2007.