Microsoft courts Macintosh business crowd

August 14, 2009 09:15:51 AM

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Microsoft on Thursday released details of an application they are crafting to let businesses equipped with Apple Macintosh computers use the software giant's Outlook email program.

Outlook for Mac will next year replace Entourage software currently offered for computers made by California-based Apple, according to Microsoft's Macintosh Business Unit (MacBU).

"I think people will see that this move to Outlook for Mac is more than just a name change," said MacBU general manager Eric Wilfrid.

"Outlook for Mac will bring features our customers have long requested, such as Information Rights Management, that make working across platforms even easier."

Microsoft on Thursday released a Web Services Edition of Entourage 2008 for Mac that lets users of Apple machines synchronize with its Tasks, Notes, and Categories software.

Entourage is a Microsoft email application packaged with Word, PowerPoint, and Excel programs tailored for Macintosh computers.

"Microsoft Outlook and Exchange Server have been a cornerstone of communications and collaboration for our enterprise customers," said Microsoft Office product management group corporate vice president Takeshi Numoto.

"Today’s release of the Web Services Edition strengthens Exchange connectivity for Entourage customers and sets the stage for the move to the new application: Outlook for Mac."