Microsoft’s got a weird history when it comes to strategy: popular software like Office has always been best on Microsoft’s own operating system, Windows. In recent years, that’s begun to shift – Office is now everywhere, including Apple and Google’s tablets, and the company’s apparently taking a similar approach with other parts of its app library. The MSN suite of apps is now available on iOS and Android; MSN Weather is out on Android, with an iOS release in the coming weeks.
Microsoft has today launched its recently rebranded mobile apps for iOS and Android devices. Following the overhaul of its MSN portal in September, the company today made MSN News, Sports, Health & Fitness, Food & Drink and Money all available to download. MSN Weather is also available to download now for Android devices, but the iOS version of this specific app is due to arrive “in the coming months,” Microsoft said. The suite of apps will also work with Amazon’s Android-based devices too. All the new apps offer seamless syncing across multiple platforms, making it easy to pick up and carry on across multiple operating systems. It’s a smart move from Microsoft; the company is still struggling to find the sort of mobile momentum with Windows Phone that Android and iOS have achieved, so making the apps available on rival platforms to get users familiar with the services makes sense. Whether or not this translates to more mobile users on its own platform in the long-run remains to be seen.
