Today is a big day for Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) as it releases Office 365 from Beta to the public. Like many things from Microsoft, outside of its core business, this feels a bit awkward.

Microsoft's approach is to put familiar tools online, figuring that the laggards to the cloud will go with a solution they know and feel comfortable with. But when it comes to the cloud, the real consideration should be around access to the cloud on the go. That presence will be come with a company that's been working in the cloud from day one, such as Google (NASDAQ: GOOG)--and comfort in the cloud is where this battle will be fought.

As Charles Arthur reports in The Guardian, Microsoft could have a lot at stake here, as it tries to walk a fine line between its profitable Office desktop software and a cloud alternative--an uncomfortable position for Microsoft. Arthur, quoting Gartner Analyst Matt Cain, reports the stakes are high for Redmond. 

"If Microsoft stumbles, it really opens the door to Google. It's a tremendous long-term threat to Microsoft and its Office franchise," Cain told Arthur.

If Microsoft were smart, it would offer Office 365 as a loss leader and undercut Google in pricing, but of course it didn't do that. Google offers a straight $5 per-user, per-month pricing model. Microsoft goes with a complex multi-tier pricing model that starts at $10 per-user, per-month for the enterprise. There is also a small business-professional price of $6 per-month. Even the latter doesn't undercut Google's price (and small businesses and individuals are more likely to use the free version).

Microsoft is apparently not offering a free version and has a Buyer's Guide for the Enterprise. You know you're getting complex when you have to download a document to figure out which pricing structure is right for you.

Google meanwhile has not stood by idly in the face of the Microsoft release, publishing a blog post on Monday called 365 reasons to Consider Google Docs that goes after its rival with guns blazing. The real wild card here, in my view, is how this is how well Office 365 integrates with SharePoint online because that will provide the ability to work together as opposed to alone, a crucial piece online. Of course, the other piece is how much Microsoft will add to the monthly fee when SharePoint gets added to the equation.

It should be quite a battle as companies decide to go with a pure cloud offering or the more familiar Microsoft. Place your bets.

For more information:
- see the Office 365 Enterprise pricing guide

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