"With Windows, we're spending a lot of time thinking about how we continue to differentiate the full Windows experience, particularly as we think of our partners and how they pick Windows over Android," said Tami Reller, Microsoft's executive VP for marketing, speaking at the Goldman Sachs Technology & Internet Conference in New York Ctiy.
Reller's answer came in response to a question posed by the moderator as to Microsoft's willingness to "repurpose" Office for other platforms, even if this means "hurting Windows' appeal."
While Reller's words have been widely interpreted to mean that Microsoft is scotching its plans to produce Office apps for iPad and Android tablets, she never really said that at all.
The most significant part of her cryptic statement might have been the bit about "the full Windows experience."
'Miramar': Ready Soon?
Meanwhile, according to a report published Friday in ZDNet, Microsoft does plan to release an Office app for the iPad in the first half of 2014. Codenamed "Miramar", the app will likely require an Office 365 subscription, and it will probably save files by default to OneDrive, with options to save locally.
Also last week, a chart outlining the features of the unannounced "Office Online" suite showed up on Microsoft's site, but then abruptly and mysteriously vanished into thin air.
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