Microsoft is dropping the use of word “Online” for the web version of Office, i.e. “Office Online”. It will now simply be called “Office”.
It has also discontinued the “Online” word from its apps- “Word Online” to “Word”, “Excel Online” to “Excel”, and so on with other related apps.
“Office uses sub-brands to denote our offerings such as Office 365 and Office 2019. Because our offerings have evolved to provide access to apps on more than one platform, it no longer makes sense to use any platform-specific sub-brands,” explained Bill Doll, Microsoft in a blog post.
Microsoft’s range of product portfolio for every platform is so extensive that the company doesn’t find it logical enough to keep a unique name for products per platform.
However, there are no changes in the functionality of Office products. Also, Microsoft has said that it will continue to use the terms that refer to Office on other operating systems, such as “Office for Mac”, “Office for iOS”, and “Office for Android.”
Microsoft’s terminology switch will not affect its well-known “Online” server products, which includes Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Project Online, and Office Online Server.
“We have already made these changes across most of our in-product experiences, communications, and marketing and technical content and expect to complete the remaining updates relatively soon.” Doll added.
Recently, Microsoft announced that it has designed several client licensing changes to its Office 365 to simplify Office activation process and make it more reliable for subscribed users, such as Office 365 ProPlus. These changes will start to roll out slowly from this August.
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