Adobe to Acquire Buzzword, Move Into Online Word Processing

Adobe announced plans Monday to move into online word processing by acquiring Virtual Ubiquity Inc., which offers a collaborative authoring platform service called Buzzword. Adobe will also unveil an online document-sharing service called Share. The services will be free, although Adobe may ultimately charge for extra features. Buzzword uses Adobe technology to offer some functions that are rare among Web-based document services, including the ability to wrap text around images, and preview how printed documents will look. Terms of the deal were not released. Separately, Microsoft said Sunday it will today introduce Office Live Workspace, which will allow corporate employees to share Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents online for free (full story). The moves highlight an industry-wide move to the Web, a trend which some say is still in its infancy: Michael Mace of Rubicon Consulting says a recent survey found that while 34% of computer owners have used web-based email services, web-based services for word processing and spreadsheets have been used by just 5% and 3% of computer users.

Sources: Press release, Wall Street Journal
Commentary: Adobe COO Narayen: “Our Strategy Is Working” • Why I'm Placing a Small Bet on Adobe
Stocks/ETFs to watch: ADBE, MSFT. Competitors: GOOG, YHOO, BITS
Earnings call transcript: Adobe F3Q07
Related: Buzzword

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Comments

[Lisa]

Hard to see how Adobe will be able to compete with Google Docs without a complete office suite and email and calendar as well.

2007 Oct 01 10:57 AM

[Tom B]

The great irony of the computer age is that MSFT has such a strong presence in word processing, when their understanding of font rendering is minimal at best. Also, Adobe's PDF format SHOULD be much more widely used; it's not "closed" like DOC, but I think it isn't mostly because PDF support in Windows is pretty weak. You pretty much need add on applications, like Adobe Reader to do ANYTHING with PDF in Windows.

I think online document services have potential, but I am loathe to predict a winner. Adobe will produce a nice LOOKING, but slow product; GOOG has data center technology solid-- I think that will prove more important. MSFT won't be a player at all because they have NO credibility with regards to network security. No company will work out on the web using any kind of MS-encryption.

2007 Oct 02 11:06 PM