Today, both Microsoft and Dropbox have announced that they will form a partnership to implement Dropbox into Microsoft Office. Mobile users stand to gain the most from this announcement as it will allow Dropbox users to link their accounts directly to Word, Powerpoint, and Excel.
Head of Microsoft Engineering team, Kirk Koenigsbauer, said that integration of Dropbox was one of the most requested features from Office users on the iPad. Dropbox will function alongside Microsoft’s own OneDrive cloud storage service and will allow users to browse, and edit documents stored in Dropbox within the Office app for iPad.
Naturally, Microsoft is also using the arrangement to promote its Office 365 subscription service. If Dropbox detects that Office is not installed on an iOS or Android device the user will be prompted to download the mobile app; which requires a subscription to edit documents. Windows Phone users already have access to the Office suite of app pre-installed without the need for additional purchases to edit documents.
Dropbox also confirmed that the official Dropbox app for Windows phone and Windows tablet will be launching in the coming months.
Koenigsbauer went on to say that both Microsoft and Dropbox are dedicating resources to ensure that the partnership is a success. This partnership will no doubt benefit Microsoft in the long run, incentivising its users to use Office 365 rather than its competitors like Google Drive.
[Source: The Verge]
