Microsoft rolls out Office Online to improve usability, compete with Google Drive

Microsoft has reportedly rebranded its Office Web Apps to Office Online in a bid to improve usability.

The rebranded roll out comes a day after the software maker launched its OneDrive cloud storage, replacing SkyDrive, to compete with rival Google's online storage Drive.

According to The Verge, the new branding is designed to simplify Microsoft's free web versions of Excel, Word, and PowerPoint away from the bewildering Office Web Apps monikers.

Microsoft's Amanda Lefebvre admitted that customers complained that the inclusion of Apps in their name was confusing, as they assumed Office Web Apps were installable applications rather than online Office variants.

The report said that a lot of users simply aren't aware that Microsoft has online versions of Word, Excel, or PowerPoint because they've been buried away in SkyDrive (now OneDrive).

A new Office.com site places the web versions of Office at the front of the site in a tile formation that makes it clear exactly what services and online apps are available and it also includes an updated app bar at the top of the site to switch between services like Outlook.com and OneDrive, or Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote Online.