14 DAY TRIAL // Redmond-based software giant Microsoft is gearing up for the release of a new version of its cloud-hosted SharePoint solution, one that might arrive as SharePoint Online 2013.
A new report from ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley suggests that Microsoft is already hard at work with implementing new features with the solution, and has also confirmed the possible name of the upcoming product.
The forthcoming solution will be part of the next major Office 365 release, which will also include Exchange Online 15 and Lync Online 15 (in addition to SharePoint Online 15).
The new product release comes in line with the Office 15 launch, which was made available as a technical preview back in January.
Basically, Microsoft is planning the launch of new iterations of its Office client, Office servers and Office in the cloud solutions at the same time. Moreover, it appears that the company is planning their release under the Office 2013 name.
Leaked info on the matter unveils not only this, but also what SharePoint Online 15/2013 might include when made available (based on the Technology Preview that was made available two months ago).
Apparently, we’re to expect a SharePoint Duet feature in the final release, based on the Duet add-on developed by SAP and Microsoft, along with support for viewing business intelligence content on Apple iPad devices.
Moreover, the upcoming product will have better Office Web Apps, which will run from a new Office Server. Devs will be able to link to documents stored in IBM FileNet, OpenText, and Oracle. As expected, it will also pack a series of features influenced by the Metro UI.
SharePoint Server 15 will also feature Rights Management Services (RMS) integration. Moreover, there will be a new Project site for the management of lightweight projects, along with a Visio cloud service component.
Moreover, SharePoint is said to heavily rely on Windows Azure, which might suggest that Microsoft is considering moving SharePoint Online — or maybe all of Office 365 – to Azure with the next release (Microsoft has already confirmed plans to move Office 365 to Azure at some point in the future).