Microsoft Plans More Multi-Platform Mobile Products for 2012

Microsoft mobile products are already available on a variety of mobile platforms out there, such as OneNote or Lync, and it appears that more of them should arrive as soon as next year.

In a recent interview with ZDNet’s Mary-Jo Foley, Tom Rizzo, Senior Director of Office 365, said that the company was considering the release of more such mobile products for multiple platforms in the months to come.

“We want to work where people work, whether it’s online or offline, and on various platforms,” Rizzo stated.

Recently, Microsoft has released and updated OneNote on the iPhone and a new flavor on the iPad, a SkyDrive application for the iPhone, the Lync client for Android and Hotmail for Android. Moreover, they wait for Lync for iPhone to receive the necessary approvals.

Apparently, Microsoft is focused on delivering applications mainly to users in the Enterprise segment, and this is the main reason for which they deliver more and more apps for the iPhone, leaving Android a bit behind (they appear to be neglecting Windows Phone as well, and many users have already complained of this).

Here’s what Rizzon had to say on this: “Android is more of a consumer device play. But iOS and iPad are mattering more in the enterprise.”

When it comes to Office, Windows Phone remains the main focus, as Microsoft is determined to ensure full support for the mobile platform.

Apparently, the company’s products are being adopted by both small and large enterprises, and Rizzo was keen on stating that: “We are being successful in the enterprise and have announced names of some big customers going with Office 365.”

He also explained that customers can now offer an Office 365 appliance (Office 365 in a box) if they want to. There will be a series of on-premises features arriving to Office 365 next year, such as new cloud-specific capabilities for products in the Office 365 suite.