The next time you fire up any of the web versions of Microsoft’s Office applications, you might notice something slightly different about them. Starting “relatively soon,” Microsoft is dropping the “Online” branding of its Office Online suite and will refer to the web apps as simply Office. The decision means that the company’s products like “Word Online” and “PowerPoint Online” will now simply be “Word” and “PowerPoint.” The same goes for the rest of Microsoft’s line of Office apps.
On one hand, ditching “Online” as a naming convention makes sense. It goes without saying if you are accessing the app through the web that you are using the “online” version of it. On the other hand, it might cause some confusion when Microsoft tries to differentiate between its desktop, mobile and web apps. The company said that it will continue referring to the web-based apps as “Office for the web” to clarify the platform, which is kind of what the “Online” moniker did for them already.
While the popular Office apps including Word, PowerPoint and Excel are shaking the “Online” descriptor, other Microsoft products will be hanging onto it. The company said it will continue to use the naming convention for Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Project Online and Office Online Server.
