Most companies that spoke to The Journal said they never seriously considered using Google, "but they did use Google as a threat to
negotiate a better deal from Microsoft, which is the first sign of trouble," notes The Business Insider.
What's more, Google Apps now have 50 million users. "True, only 1
million of these are paying users," remarks The Business Insider. "Many of the paying users, moreover, probably pay less than Google's asking price of $50 a year ... But the size of the revenue
contribution to Google should come as no solace to Microsoft."
"The big unknown in the story," as ZDNet's Between The Lines picks up
on, is "How this Google scrum is impacting Microsoft's pricing power on Office."
Bottom line, "Google Apps is gunning for Microsoft's stronghold of the office computing industry," writes Gadgetell. "Google Apps represents a potential threat to Microsoft's core business of selling office-oriented software ... Apps's incredibly cheap price also serves as a way to entice companies seeking cost-cutting measures ... There are less people who will purchase Office licenses and Exchange-related services if they can get similar services from Google that are much cheaper and 'good enough' to meet their base needs."