Have you ever watched your kids, or other kids do their homework on the internet? My daughter is 11, and she uses Google Docs so she can collaborate with others and work on their projects at the same time. Amazing. Microsoft today just announced a massive discount on Office Ultimate for students - a discount of up to 91%. It works out to around $59.95 in the end for the entire package.
"At Microsoft, we understand the needs of the college and university student population in the U.S., and we want to provide students with the tools they need to succeed in their careers," said Naman Khan, Worldwide Product Manager, Office Ultimate Steal. "The Ultimate Steal Promotion allows students to maximize their productivity and reach their full potential, at a fraction of the price they would otherwise pay at a retail store. These savings are especially important in today's challenging economy."
That quote should probably read something like: "At Microsoft people are freaked out about what Google is doing with their online initiative. Hell our kids use Google Docs and we still can't figure out why, it doesn't even come on a CD. Hopefully by coming out with a cool edgy name like Ultimate Steal we can fool kids into thinking that spending $60 is better than using a free seamless service that just works."
Honestly, I shouldn't be laughing. Microsoft knows that getting in with students is a strategy that goes back to the original Apple days, where if you get the students using your technology they'll go home and ask their parents to buy it for them. Eventually they'll go out on their own and use the tools they grew up on. The issue is the cloud is getting bigger and more powerful, and it has everyone thinking about what's next. Generally hardware is becoming less relevatent as software continues to drive the markets forward. Thus overall outside of the box thinking is crucial...
We're certainly being kept on our toes - thank goodness I saw this coming a long time ago. I am not sitting around waiting to see what happens next that's for sure.
Anyways, just some food for thought. Is Microsoft's Office as powerful as it once was? I still use it, but admittedly I use Google Docs to collaborate on other projects and it works really well. Chrome + Gmail + Google Docs + Google Search = Internet Heaven.
