Microsoft Denies Claims of Imminent Launch of Office for iPad [Updated x4]

Earlier today, a report from The Daily claimed that Microsoft has a "working prototype" of its Office suite for iPad, with the app reportedly set to be submitted to Apple for App Store approval "soon".

022112 tech apps office ss
The New York Times now reports that Microsoft has issued a statement denying at least some of the claims made in the original report, although the company offered no detail on what specific claims it was objecting to.

A Microsoft spokeswoman issued this statement: “The Daily story is based on inaccurate rumors and speculation. We have no further comment.”

Following the introduction of the original iPad back in 2010, Microsoft indicated that it was "looking at", the possibility of bringing Office to the device, but by the time the device launched a few months later the company said it had "no current plans" for such a project. Rumors of Office for iPad were revived by The Daily late last year with claims that Microsoft was "actively working" on an app.

Update: Microsoft has also responded to ZDNet, claiming that the screenshot accompanying The Daily's report is "not a real picture of a Microsoft software product".

A Microsoft spokesperson said the screen shot accompanying The Daily’s story is not a real picture of a Microsoft software product. But the spokesperson also said Microsoft is declining to comment as to whether or not the company has developed a version of Office for the iPad and/or when such a product may come to market.

Update 2: The Daily's Peter Ha has taken to Twitter to defend the original report, saying that "a working version of the app was demoed to us by someone at Microsoft."

peter ha daily office ipad
Update 3: TechCrunch has also weighed in, offering another statement from Ha and its own confirmation that the project is indeed real.

Sure enough, they did their homework and Ha stands by the story and pic.

"We’ve been chasing this story down for weeks. We did not fabricate the image and Microsoft isn’t denying the existence of Office for iPad. All this fuss over a photo is nonsense. The story is real."

We also got confirmation from local sources in Seattle, who assure us that the software is real and being developed in-house. However, as the build in the picture is far from final, Microsoft can deny (in its overly specific way) that it’s not a real product.

Update 4: Microsoft's official Microsoft News account on Twitter has weighed in promising that the situation will become clear in the "coming weeks".

Great respect for The Daily but regrettably someone is giving them bad info, and that’ll be clear in the “coming weeks.”

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Neutral)
Related Forum: iPad

Top Rated Comments

Renzatic Avatar
152 months ago
Rumor: Office for iPad release imminent.

Holy crap! I can't wait! Office is so awesome! Having it on the iPad just makes it that much moreso!

Confirmation: Office release not anywhere near imminent.

Who cares! No one likes Office anyway. It's a bloated piece of Microsoft junk, which is a company that's gonna be dead in, like, two years. They probably just copied iWork for the iPad anyway!

SOUR GRAPES
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
D.T. Avatar
152 months ago
Then who did I just send $50 to for Office? Oh, Mikrosoft in Nigeria. oops.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SgtBullmoose Avatar
152 months ago
Microsoft seems to enjoy losing market share.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
lilo777 Avatar
152 months ago
I have had office for Mac on 4 different Macs over the years and it takes forever to open, crashes all the time and I get a pinwheel for 20 seconds anytime I try to change a font. Microsoft just doesn't do well developing on platforms other than Windows.

Oh oh, and every time I plug my Air into my thunderbolt display every excel window I have open goes full screen no matter how much data it contains...super annoying. Ok now I'm just complaining. ;)

How do you like iTunes on Windows?
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
applesith Avatar
152 months ago
MS would be fools to not get Office out for the ipad.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
marcusj0015 Avatar
152 months ago
Because spokespeople are to be believed.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iphone se 4 modified flag edges

iPhone SE 4 Details: Action Button, USB-C Port, Face ID, and More

Wednesday September 27, 2023 1:34 pm PDT by
Significant changes are expected to arrive with Apple's fourth-generation iPhone SE, in terms of both design and hardware, MacRumors has learned. The iPhone SE 4, known internally under the codename Ghost, is expected to receive a new design derived almost entirely from the base model iPhone 14. According to our sources, the iPhone SE 4 will use a modified version of the iPhone 14 chassis...
Multi Display CarPlay 1

All-New Apple CarPlay Launching Later This Year With These 5 New Features

Friday September 29, 2023 11:29 am PDT by
At WWDC 2022 last year, Apple previewed the next generation of CarPlay, promising deeper integration with vehicle functions like A/C and FM radio, support for multiple displays across the dashboard, personalization options, and more. Apple said the first vehicles with support for the next-generation CarPlay experience would be announced in late 2023, but it has still not shared any additional...
iOS 17

Everything New in iOS 17.1 Beta 1

Wednesday September 27, 2023 1:57 pm PDT by
Just a week after releasing iOS 17, Apple has seeded the first beta of iOS 17.1 to developers. iOS 17.1 adds some features that Apple promised were coming to iOS 17 in the future, plus it refines and improves some existing features. This guide covers everything new in the first iOS 17.1 beta. Apple Music Favorites You can favorite songs, albums, playlists, and artists in the iOS 17.1...
iPhone 15 Pro lineup

iPhone 15 Pro Overheating Concerns Highlighted in Two More Reports

Thursday September 28, 2023 6:25 am PDT by
iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max overheating concerns continue to make headlines this week, with the topic highlighted by The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. Both of the reports document anecdotal complaints from customers, and outline potential causes, but it's unclear how many devices are actually affected. Bloomberg said the overheating could be caused or compounded by the iPhone's setup...
iPhone 15 Pro lineup

Apple to Address iPhone 15 Pro Overheating Issue With iOS 17 Update

Saturday September 30, 2023 9:28 am PDT by
Apple plans to release an iOS 17 update to address a bug that may contribute to the reported iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max overheating issue, according to a statement the company shared today with MacRumors and Forbes reporter David Phelan. Apple also says some recent updates to third-party apps have overloaded the system and contributed to the overheating issue. The report notes that...
iPhone 15 USB C Port Keynote

Some USB-C Power Banks Fail to Work With iPhone 15

Thursday September 28, 2023 2:06 pm PDT by
Apple added a USB-C port to the iPhone 15 lineup this year, allowing it to work with USB-C cables, USB-C power banks, and more. It turns out that some USB-C battery packs are not working properly with Apple's iPhone 15, resulting in charging issues. As highlighted on Reddit and the MacRumors forums, not all existing USB-C power banks can be used with the iPhone 15 models, perhaps due to the...
iOS 17

Apple Releases iOS 17.0.2 and iPadOS 17.0.2 for All iPhones and iPads

Tuesday September 26, 2023 12:47 pm PDT by
Apple today released iOS 17.0.2 and iPadOS 17.0.2 updates, with the software coming five days after the releases of iOS 17.0.1 and iPadOS 17.0.1. Today's iOS 17.0.2 and iPadOS 17.0.2 updates arrive as build 21A351 and can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Note that iOS 17.0.2 was previously made available for iPhone...