Infotech Lead Asia: Microsoft has added several new enterprise customers for Office 365 in India.
But Microsoft India’s initiatives and growth in attracting customers to Office 365 are slow as compared to its global success.
Its new customers in India — for Office 365 — include Lupin, Godrej Group, Tata Communications, AEGON Religare, etc.
Existing enterprise users in India include: Tata Elxsi, FICCI, SIRO Clinpharm, Unilog, Gavs Technologies, Visaka Industries, ACME Tele Power, Dabur India, Adhunik Group, Infiniti Retail, to name a few.
One of the Indian enterprise CIOs says that the price may be a block to its success.
Priced at Rs. 4199 per year for consumers, new Microsoft Office 365 ranges between US$ 6 per month to US$ 22 per month for business customers.
Office 365 can be installed on up to five devices for a single user under the Office 365 licensing.
Globally, Microsoft’s growth story is different.
After 18 months, one in five of Microsoft’s enterprise customers use the paid service globally, up from one in seven a year ago. The number of small and medium-sized businesses using Office 365 around the world has also grown by over 150 percent in the last 12 months.
Pharmaceutical major Lupin is one of the main customers for Office 365 that was officially launched in India on Monday.
Mayur Danait, CIO, Lupin, said: “With Office 365, we can take full advantage of reliable technology that help business run effectively at lower costs.”
According to Indian CIOs, Office 365 creates a more productive mobile workforce by providing employees access to email, documents, contacts, and calendars.
Ramkumar Pichai, GM – Microsoft Office Division, Microsoft India, said: “This release of Office brings to life the power of next generation computing. It also reflects Microsoft’s commitment of powering the newer work scenarios businesses are experiencing.”
Microsoft’s Office 365 that works across multiple devices is the most comprehensive productivity suite with Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, OneNote, Access, Project and Visio. In addition, it includes updated Microsoft Lync Online, Exchange Online, SharePoint Online and the all new Yammer.
Microsoft also made available business SKUs of Office 2013 for on premise users.
Bhaskar Pramanik, chairman, Microsoft Corporation India, said: “In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, the next generation Office 365 unlocks social and mobility scenarios that will allow businesses and individuals to take full advantage of the cloud.”
Baburajan K
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