Microsoft customising Office for netbooks

In a sign, which shows how serious Microsoft is taking the netbook segment, Microsoft is looking at ways to customise its Office suite to cater for netbook users. Stephen Elop, president of Microsoft’s business division said, “There are new ways to package and monetize SKUs that are unique to the netbook market. From the Office perspective if someone is spending just a few hundred dollars on a netbook, how much will they spend on productivity software?”

Given the free alternatives out there, including the excellent Openoffice.org, it seems that MS are asking the right questions. As we reported yesterday, Windows is now shipping on approximately 90% of all netbooks sold (well in the US anyway) and MS will need to price its specific SKU’s carefully distinguishing the desktop market versus netbook-specific SKUs.

Via Network World.