Fasthosts offers Microsoft Office software from £5 a month
- Web host pioneers affordable Software-as-a-Service for consumers and businesses.
- Downloadable MS Office suite features version updates and no contract ties.
Consumers and businesses alike are offered a convenient and affordable new way to buy the latest version Microsoft Office software, launched today by Fasthosts Internet Ltd, the UK’s largest web host. Fasthosts Microsoft Office is a new software product, priced from only £4.99 a month +VAT, which delivers full version Microsoft Office 2007 suite including Word, Excel and PowerPoint applications, downloaded simply and efficiently to a user’s PC. The package comprises an affordable and highly flexible way to use Microsoft software. The launch reflects Fasthosts’ continued progress within the Software-as-a-Service arena.
Fasthosts Microsoft Office package utilises the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model to provide a new way to obtain the popular Microsoft Office product including its Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook applications, without the up-front costs and discs involved with the boxed product. Users pay for the software on a low monthly basis, from £4.99/month+VAT, with no contract ties.
After registering at www.fasthosts.co.uk, users are delivered their software easily via a download direct to their PC. The full version MS Office suite is exactly the same in appearance and functionality as the boxed product. The software is run locally on a user’s PC and verified with Fasthosts when the PC goes online. Users are guaranteed to continually benefit from the latest software versions via occasional automatic version and security updates to ensure customers have the most current software.
Fasthosts MS Office Standard, includes the applications MS Word 2007, MS Excel 2007, MS Outlook 2007 and MS PowerPoint 2007 and is priced at £4.99/month +VAT for any household that has a user engaged in educational activities (such as school, college, night classes etc), and £14.99/month +VAT for business users. Fasthosts MS Office Professional Plus, benefits additionally from Microsoft Publisher 2007, Microsoft Access 2007 and Infopath 2007, and is priced at £6.99/month+VAT for any household that has a user engaged in educational activities, and £19.99/month+VAT for business users.
Mark Jeffries, CTO Fasthosts Internet, said “Our MS Office package is an excellent way to obtain the very latest versions of the software we all need, affordably, on a pay-as-you-go basis. It’s low monthly cost and easy installation will suit a great many home and business users”.
The Software-as-a-Service concept allows the provision of software by a vendor such as Fasthosts for delivery or use over the Internet. Customers do not pay for owning the software itself but rather for using it. This enables users to pay for software gradually, and benefit from service benefits such as free updates and any support provided by the vendor. In light of the cost and scalability benefits, SaaS is widely expected to surge in popularity in the coming years. Fasthosts MS Office is an interesting example of SaaS further developing within the consumer and SME space.
Fasthosts’ MS Office range is born out of many years experience at the forefront of developing and repackaging Microsoft Hosting technologies and applications including MS Exchange and MS hosting packages.
Jeffries added, “We will continue to develop new products that make full use of one’s Internet access to fulfill software and other computing needs. Individuals and businesses alike can gain from the flexibility that Internet-driven software can offer”.
As the UK’s largest web host, Fasthosts offers a comprehensive range of the latest web solutions including domain name registrations, Mail Plus and Exchange email solutions, shared web hosting, dedicated servers, online payment services, reseller web hosting and feature-rich broadband packages.
