Microsoft to launch new version of Office this year
A new version of Microsoft Office for commercial customers – Office LTSC (Long-Term Servicing Channel) – will be launched later this year, as will Office 2021 for consumers and small businesses. It will be available for both Windows and Mac. It is designed for users who don’t want to use the cloud-based Microsoft 365 version of Office products.
Tom Warren from The Verge investigates more about this latest version.
The release of Office 365 in 2011 saw Microsoft take its productivity software in a new direction.
For the first time, the Office suite will be available as part of a subscription service.
Features of the new version of Microsoft Office
The new version of Microsoft Office, for which there will be a preview next month, will include dark mode support, accessibility improvements, and features like Dynamic Arrays and XLOOKUP in Excel. The most obvious change visually will be with Dark Mode. Currently, Word has a dark mode which modifies the ribbon and toolbars. However, the canvas stays bright white. The ability to switch the canvas into dark mode, too, will be available in Office LTSC. The note taking program OneNote will also be available in the new version.
The interface will change and some features of the new version will mirror those of Microsoft 365.
“We have a lot of customers that have moved to the cloud over the last 10 months. That has happened en masse really. At the same time, we definitely have customers who have specific scenarios where they don’t feel like they can move to the cloud”, said Jared Spataro, Head of Microsoft 365.
Support and pricing
The new version of Microsoft Office LTSC will be supported for five years. This means, the support offered is two years less than with the current version. This revised length of support aligns more closely with how Windows is supported. Microsoft are aligning its release schedules for both Office and Windows more closely. Both 32- and 64-bit options will be available.
Pricing for Office Professional Plus, Office Standard, and individual apps will be increasing by ten percent for commercial customers.
Make sure your Office has the latest version
Efficiency is so important for business. Being able to create, collaborate and communicate seamlessly makes any organisation more effective. Having access to productivity tools that enable your team to do their jobs more easily. Accessing your work from anywhere, allows businesses to be agile and lets them compete in their sector.
Contact the LIS Help Desk to discuss the new version of Microsoft Office. Are you running older version of Microsoft Office? We can help with upgrades, security, cloud back up and any of your IT requirements.
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