Office 2019 Shock Announcement

It seems almost impossible to believe, but Microsoft caught many unaware as they announced what users should expect in Office 2019. Whilst the new features were unveiled and showcased (which we will leave to other industry commentators), the major news is that Excel 2019 will not be included in the standard versions of the product and will instead be replaced with the newly-acquired Lotus 1-2-3.

For those who aren’t prepared to export all their spreadsheets back to the old faithful from yesteryear, Microsoft has recognised some users may still have a need for Excel. Therefore, it will be available for purchase in enterprise FU2 volume licenses, Office Extreme Professional Plus Plus and the new subscription product Office 730, which allows you to do twice as much work.

Microsoft spokesperson Olaf O’Pirl stated that “…this was a major step forward for the software giant…”, with Clippy set to return, as well as the new products Power Drill and the Hasbro-sponsored Get & Transformers to be announced shortly.

Microsoft shares remained steady at US 6 cents. For more details and to read the press release in full, please click here.