Tag: microsoft

The applications are designed for users of Window phones and other mobile devices based on the platform.

Last Friday, a long awaited announcement about Microsoft Office was finally made, to unveil the suite of apps that would be available in a format that was touchscreen friendly, to make it possible for the users of mobile devices to actually use the applications with greater ease.

The suite is meant for users of Windows phone and includes Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

The touchscreen compatible Microsoft Office apps version will not only make it possible for users of Windows Phone based devices to work on documents within those programs, but it is also meant to make it possible for those docs to transfer from one type of device to another with greater ease. The company has called them its Office Universal apps and the test versions have already become available. That said, it has also announced that the full versions of these mobile apps will become available before the end of April.

This new touchscreen version of Microsoft Office apps is an announcement that many users have awaited for months.

Pretty much everyone knew that these mobile apps were on their way, but the main question was when they would actually become available for users of Windows phone and tablet devices. There have already been similar Office apps launched that are touchscreen friendly and that have been released by Microsoft for users of tablets running on Android from Google, and on Apple’s iPhones and iPads. This was quite the step away from the traditions of the company and the mobile technology industry, for that matter.

The idea behind that strategy was that those rival platforms are the most popular at the moment and are currently dominating the mobile computing industry. Therefore, they were catering to a market that was much larger and more lucrative for its Office products than its own platform of Windows for smartphones and tablets.

The basic functions of the Microsoft Office apps will be available to everyone for free, but users will need to subscribe to Office 365 (a paid Cloud based service) in order to obtain advanced editing features.

Rumors suggest that Google may be looking to buy Softcard

Google may be in negotiations to acquire Softcard, the mobile payments firm that had once been known as Isis. Rumors suggest that Google may be looking to purchase Softcard for some $100 million, but neither company has confirmed this speculation or denied that negotiations are taking place. Google has a strong interest in mobile payments, having a payment platform of its own that has found modest success. The company has been working to establish a stronger foothold in the mobile commerce space in order to compete with others therein.

Softcard hit by layoffs during restructuring effort to become more efficient

Earlier in the month, Softcard laid off 60 of its employees during a consolidation phase. The company is taking steps to reduce the costs that it is exposed to in order to strengthen its business position. The layoffs were part of a larger restructuring of the company, which involves simplifying its organizational structure in order to be more efficient. This is not an uncommon practice in the business world, especially when it comes to the turbulent mobile payments industry.

Company helps 200,000 merchants accept NFC-based mobile payments from Android and Windows Phone devices

Softcard exists as a way for large organizations to embrace mobile consumers with NFC-enabled devices. The firm offers NFC-based payment systems, which allow companies to accept transactions being made with mobile devices that are using NFC technology. Softcard claims that more than 200,000 merchants in the United States are making use of this service, as well as the Softcard application, which is available for both Windows Phone and Andorid.

Other companies show potential interest in the acquisition of Softcard

Google may not be the only company that is interested in Softcard. Rumors suggest that both PayPal and Microsoft have approached the company concerning potential acquisition. None of these companies have confirmed that these rumors are true, however. In Google’s case, the company is adamant in not acknowledging such rumors, apart from noting that it does not confirm rumors about its business operations.