Acompli, the email startup company responsible for its synonymous app for both iOS and Android, has gained the attention of Microsoft, one the leaders of email technology. In fact, its app has garnered so much attention and praise from the industry that Microsoft has announced its intention to buy Acompli for an undisclosed sum.
Last June Acompli raised $7.3 million, making the timing of this acquisition not at all surprising. Typically, companies raise 18 months’ worth of capital which leads many insiders to believe that the company might have been on the hunt for more capital but instead found a buyer in Microsoft.
What is Acompli?
For those of you that may not know, Acompli is a third party email app available on both the iOS and Android platforms. It is, quite simply, a mobile email app designed for professionals. With Acompli, users can not only access traditional email systems using the IMAP or POP protocols but it also offers full Exchange support allowing business users to connect to their business email systems using an interface that is easy to use and very familiar. While most email applications offer Exchange support, Acompli takes this support one step further to offer business users a mobile email experience that they have wanted for quite some time.
Extensive Exchange Support
Acompli is quite simply a mobile email app designed for professionals. While third party email applications and the default apps included in both Android and iOS offer Exchange integration, none handle it quite as well as Acompli. It’s perfect for business and professional users who prefer a more seamless integration into Microsoft Exchange. Unlike many of the other third party applications, Acompli handles tasks such as contact management, event creation and responding to invites in a way that is much like Microsoft Outlook. With its very Outlook-like interface, switching to Acompli for mobile email is a very smooth transition for all business professionals regardless of how tech savvy they are.
Could Acompli Become Outlook Mobile?
With that very familiar interface which imitates a traditional Outlook experience, many users have long been saying that Microsoft should purchase the company and create a true Outlook Mobile experience. With this latest announcement from Microsoft it seems that of these hopes and dreams may come true. Microsoft could simply rebrand Acompli as Outlook Mobile or could use the app as a base for a future release of their own mobile Outlook application.
Outlook is hands down one of the leading email applications available on the market and is used by millions of individuals and businesses all over the world. However, Microsoft has fallen behind in many of the emerging markets and its email clients have languished, waiting for a mobile release across a variety of platforms. With this acquisition, Microsoft it seems has finally begun the push into mobile and we could see a mobile edition of Outlook hit the app stores of our favorite mobile platforms very soon. As of now, Acompli can still be found on your regular app store and will most likely remain there until Microsoft makes the final decision about the app’s future. One can only hope that Microsoft continues the path started by Acompli, giving users everywhere better access to their business email wherever they go.
