Google offering Google+ for businesses, free until the end of 2013

Google offering Google for businesses, free until the end of 2013

Google is bringing the enterprise-friendly elements of its Apps platform into Google+ in order to help businesses collaborate on projects online. The company's been using the service internally, but feels it's time to launch, in Google tradition, a "full preview" with a free and open beta that'll run until the end of 2013. The feature set includes private sharing, admin tools and, most impressively, hangouts directly integrated into Calendar, Gmail and Docs -- letting you video chat with multiple colleagues while you draft that project proposal, or resignation letter. Apps chief Clay Bavor hasn't mentioned how much the service will cost when the preview period finishes, but we'd be surprised if it was much more than what it currently charges if it's trying to snare the Yammer and Salesforce crowds.

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Google offering Google+ for businesses, free until the end of 2013 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Aug 2012 12:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft completes Yammer buy-out, social network joins the Office

Microsfot finalizes Yammer buyout, joins the Office

Social network Yammer is now a fully-fledged part of the Redmond family. It'll sidle up along the company's Office division, with the team already working on the adoption of Yammer's standalone service within Microsoft. Check the full (but short) announcement on the company's official blog -- the link's below.

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Microsoft completes Yammer buy-out, social network joins the Office originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Jul 2012 12:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft buying Yammer to beef up enterprise social networking efforts

Microsoft buying Yammer to beef up enterprise social networking efforts

So, what exactly is a Yammer? Well, it's a simple social network designed not to connect you with family or college roommates, but with with your coworkers. The platform has had some success, but its most high profile moment may be today's announcement that Microsoft had purchased the company. Rumors had been circulating for about a week, but now Redmond has made it official and issued a press release announcing its plan to purchase the startup for $1.2 billion in cash. Yammer will continue to live on as a stand alone service, which should make its 5 million users and countless Fortune 500 customers happy. But Microsoft will certainly be looking to fold its features into its own suite of enterprise offerings, like SharePoint and Office 365. For more info check out the PR after the break.

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Microsoft buying Yammer to beef up enterprise social networking efforts originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 14:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft buys Yammer for $1.2 Billion: WSJ


The rumor that Microsoft buys Yammer appeared yesterday. The Wall Street Journal has now a new report that says that Yammer has agreed to the terms and sells for $1.2 billion to MS.It is not clear...