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Salesforce and Microsoft to unleash integrations ... next year

Timetable for collaboration looks to be slipping a bit

SaaS superpower Salesforce has revealed the details of its cloudy collaboration with Microsoft, and the main detail is that the fruits of the relationship won't be delivered until deep into 2015.

Redmond's corporate veep for Windows marketing Tony Prophe appeared alongside Salesforce supremo Marc Benioff at the latter company's Dreamforce gabfest in the USA to detail a raft of integrations between the two companies' flagships:

Here's what the two companies announced today and the expected delivery dates.

  • Salesforce1 for Windows – a Windows app said to allow “customers to run their business from their Windows 8.1 mobile devices.” It's in preview now “with general availability anticipated for the second half of 2015.”
  • Salesforce Files – a tool that “helps customers unlock files from Microsoft SharePoint so they are mobile, social and can be used in the context of any Salesforce business process.” This one is on sale today.
  • Salesforce1 integration with Microsoft Office, SharePoint and OneDrive for Business on iOS devices and Android phones – touted as allowing “customers to seamlessly open, edit and save documents” with availability “anticipated for the first half of 2015.”
  • A new Salesforce1 App for Outlook – touted as allowing users to “access and manage their Salesforce information right from Outlook.” Sometime in the first half of 2015.
  • Power BI for Office 365 and Excel integrations with Salesforce – this one will allow users to “bi-directionally load data to Salesforce and Excel to build reports, visualize information and discover new insights.” It's in preview and again “anticipated for the first half of 2015” with a “Salesforce app for Excel is anticipated for the second half of 2015.”

Microsoft and Salesforce announced their intention to work together in late May. At the time, Redmond suggested significant integrations would be available by 2015. Today's announcements suggest those with a hankering for Salesforce/Office links will have to wait a little longer.

The world of SaaS moves fast. Are Salesforce and Microsoft moving fast enough? ®

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