Microsoft Office 365 beta now available to download

Microsoft has released a public beta of its cloud-based Office 365 productivity service in 38 countries including the UK, offering packages tailored to large enterprises and SMBs.

Office 365 is a subscription-based service that allows companies and individuals to use Office and other web-based applications anywhere, the firm said on the Office 365 web site.

Key features include Office Web Apps to view and edit Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote documents on the move using a web browser.

Customers can collaborate on documents simultaneously and share files using password protection via SharePoint Online.

Meanwhile, Microsoft Lync Online allows users to find and communicate with colleagues via instant messaging and Lync video calls, or start an online meeting from within the Office application.

Lync Online also allows customers to share desktops, online whiteboards and presentations with colleagues and third-party partners and clients.

Exchange Online allows email, calendar and contacts to be synchronised across a range of devices, including PCs, Macs, and iPhone, Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phone smartphones.

However, Microsoft noted that some mobile functionality requires Office Mobile 2010, which is available only on Windows Phone 7 devices.

Microsoft is also touting the security and reliability of the cloud-based service, guaranteeing a 99.9 per cent uptime and the latest anti-virus and anti-spam products to protect email.

The beta programme is open to all and there are two packages on offer. Office 365 Plan P1 is aimed at professionals or small businesses with a maximum of 25 employees and no IT support.  Plan E3 is suited to larger IT-based organisations.

Microsoft has confirmed that Office 365 will replace the company's existing Office Live Small Business service. The transition to 365 is expected to begin in late 2011 or early 2012, and customers who choose to have their accounts moved will get three months of Office 365 for small businesses free.

Beta users will be given a 30-day trial when Office 365 is commercially released, after which subscriptions start at £4 per month per user.

The launch of the public Office 365 beta is an important milestone for Microsoft as there has been pent up demand for the service, explained Jeffrey Mann, research vice president at Gartner.

"Google and IBM have had their cloud-based services out for some time and Microsoft is playing catch up. The inclusion by Microsoft's of its most valuable franchise in the form of Office Apps shows that it is serious about its cloud offering," Mann told V3.co.uk.

"The compatibility of Office 365 with the iPhone is an important inclusion. However, the service is unlikely to trigger a big boost in uptake of the Windows Phone 7 platform."