Microsoft delays Office 2007 release

SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp. said Thursday it will delay the release of its Office 2007 business productivity software, citing a desire to implement
improvements from customer feedback received during testing.

The world's biggest software maker said it will now aim for a launch of Office 2007 to business customers by the end of 2006 rather than an earlier target of October.

Microsoft also said it would delay the general availability of the Office upgrade to early 2007 from its previous January target.

In March, the company pushed back the consumer launch of the 2007 Microsoft Office package, which includes the Word processor, Excel spreadsheet and PowerPoint presentation software to January to coincide with the debut of its Windows Vista operating system.

Microsoft said it plans to assess the impact of the Office 2007 delay on its Windows Vista launch, which had been targeted to move at the same time as Office 2007.

Office and Windows are Microsoft's two mainstay products, accounting for more than half of the company's total revenue.

Shares of Microsoft rose 31 cents to $23.47 in Thursday Nasdaq trade.

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