Google Steps Into Microsoft's Office

Not to long ago I wrote about Google's information architecture. I didn't get any answers to my question what Google's info architecture looks like (yet). But I did get answers to this question I asked:

Although Google products are free and can also be used in enterprises, I haven't heard of many companies dumping Microsoft and using free web 2.0 stuff (from Google a.o.) from then on.

But then I ran into this article a couple of days ago: "Google steps into Microsoft's Office". One of the companies that's thinking about swapping their old email system for Google (Apps for your domain) is Pixar Animation Studio's.

Greg Brandeau is itching to dump the decade-old, homegrown e-mail system he manages at Pixar Animation Studios Inc.. And the senior vice-president for technology at the Walt Disney Co. unit is sure about one thing: The replacement won't be Microsoft Corp.'s Exchange and Outlook duo, whose e-mail, calendar, and other programs dominate corporate computing. Brandeau says it's difficult to manage the software because Pixar uses a variety of computers. His likely choice may surprise you: Google. (...)
"We're dying to use something like this," says Brandeau. He's "on the cusp" of signing a contract with Google.

Also:

Arizona State University plans to switch most of its 65,000 students to Gmail, Google Calendar, and a customized "start page" this month.

This is confirmed here (- this post from "Innovation Creators" also gives a example business case for adopting e.g. Google apps for my domain instead of MS Office/Outlook).
But this article goes on to say:

For now, Microsoft has little to fear. Many large corporations are wary of having an e-mail system run outside their own walls, where they can't be sure it's secure from hackers and spies. And even Google concedes its services don't have all the bells and whistles of Microsoft's products, such as centralized e-mail backups that help them comply with regulatory rules. (...) More traditional companies, with a desire for more control, will be tougher to crack. "Google Apps may hit a wall with Exxon or Bank of America," says Peter Rip, general partner with Crosslink Capital and an investor in corporate Web software firms.

But the funny and interesting thing is that:

"Employees may ask, Why can't I get the services that I have at home?'"

And that's the question we have to answer. At the moment I'd answer: "I can't think of a reason why you can't have these services at the office."

Samuel