<p>Microsoft has launched Office Online, a free, online version of its Office productivity suite. It's not surprising that it has been launched, as Microsoft continues to hone its cloud and unification vision. What is surprising for many people is finding out that Microsoft already had a free online version of Office available.</p><p>Satya Nadella's appointment as the new CEO of Microsoft has served to reinforce the company's commitment to cloud services. Prior to the appointment, Nadella had been executive vice president of Microsoft's Cloud and Enterprise group and in his email to Microsoft employees on his first day as CEO, he wrote, "Our job is to ensure that Microsoft thrives in a mobile and cloud-first world."</p><p>The launch of Office Online is, in reality, a relaunch of Office Web Apps, the existing free online version of Office. Despite being a free version of the most successful and ubiquitous productivity suite on the planet, Office Web Apps suffered from two major problems no one knew what the name meant, and no one knew it existed. Microsoft acknowledged these very issues when it announced the launch of Office Online earlier this week.</p><p>A third reason for rebranding the platform was strategy. It may be coincidental that OneDrive, the rebranded SkyDrive cloud storage platform, and Office Online were launched so shortly after Nadella's appointment, but it's no coincidence that they were launched so closely together. OneDrive and and Office Online are closely integrated and are set to be central players in Microsoft's push into the cloud space.</p><p><a href="http://www.gizmag.com/introduction-microsoft-office-online/30937/">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://redmondmag.com/articles/2014/02/20/office-online-name-change.aspx">Microsoft&#039;s Office Web Apps Now Called &#039;Office Online&#039;</a> (Redmondmag.com)</p><p><a href="http://www.latinospost.com/articles/34425/20140220/free-microsoft-office-download-company-release-online-edition.htm">Free Microsoft Office Download: Company Release Free &#039;Office Online&#039; Edition</a> (Latinos Post)</p><p><a href="http://www.dubaichronicle.com/2014/02/23/meet-microsofts-answer-google-drive/">Meet Microsoft&#039;s Answer to Google Drive</a> (Dubai Chronicle)</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=d0GNQXMQTkvbWWMxMzd-f-HKyHNEM&authuser=0&ned=us">74 additional articles.</a></p>