Google targets Microsoft, announces Office editing in Docs, and Slides to take on PowerPoint

Ron

Google guns for Microsoft, announces Office editing in Docs, and Slides to take on PowerPoint

Today at its I/O 2014 keynote, Google announces big changes to its online office suite Google Docs. With its sights targeted firmly on Microsoft, the search giant said that support for the editing of Office documents is coming to Docs. It is already possible to open Microsoft Office files in Docs, but now things are being taken a step further.

Existing documents can be edited in Docs, and it will also be possible to save new documents in the ever-popular Word format. Google’s Quickoffice app is being integrated into Docs to provide a far more Office-like experience when editing documents online.

Just as with Office 365, Google is now placing a stronger emphasis on collaborative work. To keep security conscious businesses happy, fine-grained controls have been added that make it possible to review document activity and track what users have been doing.

This was not the only pot shot taken at Microsoft. Google also announced Slides — a presentation tool that aims to take on PowerPoint. In response to the increase storage levels for OneDrive, Google also announced that for a fee of $10 per month, unlimited storage will be made available to Google Drive for Work users.