bill - 1:09 am on Oct 20, 2010 (gmt 0)

Microsoft's newest direction with Office is to put it online. If you wanted hosted Microsoft Office, SharePoint, or Exchange then they'll have something for you.

Microsoft Announces Office 365 [microsoft.com] Microsoft Corp. today announced Microsoft Office 365, the company’s next generation in cloud productivity that brings together Microsoft Office, SharePoint Online, Exchange Online and Lync Online in an always-up-to-date cloud service. Office 365 makes it easier for millions more organizations to get and use Microsoft’s award-winning business productivity solutions via the cloud. With Office 365, people can work together more easily from anywhere on virtually any device, while collaborating with others inside and outside their organization in a simple and highly secure way. As part of today’s news, Microsoft is also opening a limited beta program for Office 365 in 13 countries and regions.

Office 365 is scheduled to be available worldwide next year. Check out the Office 365 site [office365.microsoft.com] or the Office 365 Community [community.office365.com] blog for more information.