Report: Microsoft Office Coming to iPad and Android Tablets This Year

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Jared Newman / TIME.com

Once again, the rumor of a Microsoft Office tablet app has reared its head, and this time, the app is reportedly coming to Android as well.

Microsoft Office will launch for the iPad and Android in November, Boy Genius Report’s “reliable source” claims. The software is reportedly the same as what The Daily claimed to have seen in February, with hints of the Metro design language that Microsoft uses in Windows 8. (The Daily had claimed that the app could launch in the”coming weeks,” which obviously didn’t happen. Also, Microsoft denied the authenticity of the app as photographed by The Daily.)

If BGR’s report is true, it raises a dilemma for Microsoft: So far, we’ve heard nothing about a tablet version of Office for Windows 8. The next proper version of Office for Windows is rumored to have a “Touch Mode” to accommodate tablets, as ZDNet previously reported, but it apparently won’t be a true tablet-friendly Metro-style app. An app for iPad and Android, but not for Windows 8, would be somewhat embarrassing for Microsoft, especially if it launches around the same time as the company’s newest operating system.

Of course, there are already  plenty of Office alternatives for tablets, including QuickOffice, Documents To Go, Google Docs for Android and Apple’s iWork suite for the iPad. But hardcore Office users sometimes fret about compatibility for their precious documents with these alternatives, so an official version would surely be a hit.

(MORE: 30 Best Apps for Apple’s New iPad)