Fasthosts offers SaaS-ish MS Office

Blimey - this one came in quietly. Fasthosts, the ISP and hosting company, are offering Microsoft Office on the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model. That means that, from £5 plus VAT per month, you can use Office as an online service with no need to buy the software outright.

Except... is it truly SaaS? The FAQs suggest that software needs to be downloaded, which is a bad start. Also, the cheapest version of the product is the educational version, which ordinarily requires some kind of verification that you are actually a student or whatever. However, in this case: "This is on a self-certification basis, and we do not ask you to provide evidence of eligibility". Que? I smell licensing issues...

Fasthosts' CTO, Mark Jeffries, calls it "an excellent way to obtain the very latest versions of the software we all need, affordably, on a pay-as-you-go basis".

"Its low monthly cost and easy installation will suit a great many home and business users," he added.

I was on the phone to a senior Microsoft executive (admittedly on the mobile side) when I saw the Fasthosts news. "I didn't know you could do that with Office," I said.

"Neither did I," he replied.

Weird one, this. I'm waiting to hear back from MS's press office, and will report further details shortly...

UPDATE: Microsoft Office's spokesperson has refused to comment on this one, due to commercial confidentiality issues with MS partners blah blah. Chasing their licensing people now... This is extremely odd.