Microsoft Office 2007 goes gold

Microsoft has officially gone 'gold' with Office - it has announced the completion of the 2007 Microsoft Office system code and confirmed that all products have been released to manufacturing (RTM).

The dates for the release of Vista and Office 2007 were leaked last week, with 30 November marking the business availability of the much-delayed Windows Vista, Office 2007 and Exchange Server 2007.

'We've crossed the development finish line and the team deserves to celebrate,' said Jeff Raikes, President of the Microsoft Business Division. 'The 2007 Microsoft Office system RTM completes the most significant improvements to the products in more than a decade. It's rewarding to be able to deliver this amazing set of products to our customers to help them take the next big leap forward in productivity.'

A launch event will take place in London, but the global launch will take place with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at the New York Stock Exchange.