14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft’s Office Mobile apps no longer show up in search results in the Windows Store, most likely as the company is preparing to pull them completely in anticipation of the eagerly-anticipated launch of the full suite expected to take place early next month.
Specifically, mobile versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint are no longer listed in the Windows Store and the search feature brings back no results, though users can still reach the apps using the direct links.
While Microsoft hasn’t provided any information on the reason Office Mobile apps went dark all of a sudden, it’s believed that this decision is related to the May 2 event when Microsoft is expected to introduce Windows 10 Cloud as part of a conference in New York.
Full office coming to the Store
During the same event, the Redmond-based software giant is projected to also launch the full version of the Office productivity suite in the Windows Store, ported to Windows 10 with Project Centennial, the firm’s own bridge solution to bring Win32 software in the Store.
This way, Microsoft offers a more capable Office productivity suite in the Windows Store while also implementing support for Windows 10 features.
Windows 10 Cloud will be a version of the operating system limited to UWP apps, so Microsoft is trying to provide users with access to the full productivity suite despite this restriction. This a strategy similar to the one adopted when it launched Windows RT with the Surface RT back in 2012, as an ARM version of Office shipped with the operating system as a way to offer buyers a powerful way to work with documents.
Full details on Microsoft’s plans, as well as target dates for Windows 10 Cloud availability and devices running the operating system, will be provided at the event early next month. In the meantime, Office Mobile apps remain available with the direct links, though it’s not yet clear how long these are going to work.