Google Takes First Software-Plus-Services Step
In the opinion of some industry pundits, Google’s decision to add offline functionality to Gmail amounts to a validation of Microsoft’s "software-plus-services" strategy, which advocates a mix of on-premise and cloud-based software as the best future computing model. Microsoft has for the past couple of years stressed the importance of building an offline experience into cloud applications, and claims that software-plus-services is something the entire industry will eventually embrace. Cynics believe Microsoft’s embrace of software plus services is just an attempt to remain relevant in the age of cloud computing, and to maintain revenue from on premise software.