Educators Have Asked, Microsoft Has Answered: Outlook Is Coming to the Mac

Microsoft’s Macintosh Business Unit (aka MacBU) has announced that the next version of Microsoft Office for Mac will include a new Cocoa-built version of Microsoft Outlook for Mac.  Outlook for Mac will replace Entourage going forward and build on Entourage’s deep integration with Exchange Web Services. (I wrote about Entourage Web Services client back in June.)

The new Outlook for Mac is built as a native Mac application.  Educators and students will be able to take advantage of backup through Time Machine and search with Spotlight.  Moreover, Outlook for Mac also borrows from its Windows heritage to enable Information Rights Management (IRM) for schools.  IRM prevents the distribution and reading of sensitive messages and documents from unauthorized users.

Whether mail is delivered on premise with Exchange Server, through the cloud with Live@edu’s Outlook Live, or on a mobile device, Outlook for Mac is available everywhere. This is one of the most requested product asks by educators. I’m thrilled to see this request being answered. It brings greater parity between Microsoft Office for Mac and Microsoft Office on Windows.  Learn more about Office for Mac here.