Microsoft to offer browser-based Office apps

The web version of Office will allow two users to work on documents

Microsoft is to make available web-based versions of its Office applications.

Office 14, the next version of Microsoft's productivity suite, will feature lightweight web versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote that can be accessed from a browser, Microsoft said.

"Customers tell us they want to be able to share information and collaborate with others seamlessly across the PC, phones and the web," said Takeshi Numoto, general manager for the Office client.

Speaking at the company's Professional Developers Conference (PDC) in Los Angeles, Numoto demonstrated how the web applications allow two people to open and edit the same document stored in Office Live Workspace, with any changes synchronised between the two copies almost instantly.

The web applications feature the ribbon interface from the full version to deliver a consistent experience, according to Numoto.

"Web Excel has the same editing capabilities, data bars and icon sets, just like I'm used to on the PC," he said.

Office Web applications will be available to consumers through Office Live and to businesses on a hosted subscription basis. Common browsers such as FireFox and Safari will be supported as well as Internet Explorer, Microsoft said.

Ray Ozzie, Microsoft's chief software architect, said the move was about delivering a vision of seamless connectivity.

"It's Office without walls," he said.

A private technical preview of Office Web applications will be available later this year.