Office 365 surpasses Google Apps in cloud-based productivity applications

Microsoft Office365 has overtaken Google Apps to become the top provider of cloud-based office productivity software, according to a new survey by cloud security provider Bitglass.

The findings are part of Bitglass's annual report on cloud adoption. The company says it uses cloud-based traffic data analysis to survey nearly 120000 global organizations.

The report focuses on major enterprise cloud applications, including microsof Traffic 365, Google Apps, Sales Force and Box. According to the report, corporate adoption of a large number of cloud applications has almost doubled, sometimes quadrupled, since 2014.

Last year, Google's market share was more than twice that of Microsoft, at 16.3%. However, Microsoft has made an amazing leap in the past 15 months and is now ahead of Google with a market share of 25.2%. Google claims a 22.8% stake.

The report also reveals how large companies with more than 500 employees choose Office365 over Google Apps at a higher speed: 34.3% and 21.9%, respectively.

Other surveys show that the overall adoption rate of cloud-based email has risen sharply from 18 per cent to 57 per cent in organizations with more than 1000 employees. Meanwhile, the number of organizations with fewer than 500 employees has almost doubled, from 24 per cent last year to 44 per cent.

Google Apps and Office365 have also grown in regulated industries and organizations, employing more than 1000 people. Google Apps has shown 200 per cent growth since 2014, while Office365 has shown 500 per cent growth in this area (from 5 per cent to 30 per cent).