Microsoft tests ad-supported Office applications
Microsoft is testing an ad-financed, free Office suite for Windows. However, several functions in Word, Excel and PowerPoint are not available. Microsoft is not planning a market launch for the time being.
The software giant Microsoft is testing an ad-financed and free Office suite for Windows users. As part of this field test with the Word, Excel and PowerPoint applications, users not only have to put up with advertisements, but also have to accept a reduction in various functions, such as The Register reported. For example, the features for line spacing and frames would be missing in Word, while Excel would be reduced by conditional formatting and pivot tables and PowerPoint would be stripped of animation tools.
Furthermore, test users could only use all three applications on Microsoft's cloud Onedrive, which means that access to local files is denied without a paid subscription. The AI tools integrated into Microsoft are also not available in the ad-financed version. It remains to be seen whether Microsoft will respond to the reactions of test users and what changes will result from this.
Opposite The Register a Microsoft spokesperson said that the company had carried out some limited tests. "There are currently no plans to launch a free, ad-supported version of Microsoft Office desktop applications," the spokesperson said, according to the report. (Dylan Windhaber/jor)
