Macintosh Business Unit (informally known as Mac BU or MacBU) is an operating unit of Microsoft Corporation that produces software for the Apple Macintosh platform. Formed on January 7, 1997, the Mac BU currently employs more than 180 people, is situated within Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division and is one of the largest developers of Macintosh software outside of Apple Inc.

Software

Mac BU currently develops Macintosh versions of Microsoft Office, Microsoft Messenger, and Remote Desktop Client. Other software developed (but no longer maintained) by Mac BU include Internet Explorer (development ceased in 2003), Virtual PC, and the MSN for Mac OS X browser (cancelled May 31, 2005).

History

Prior to the Mac BU, Microsoft has developed Macintosh software – in fact, dating to 1984 when Microsoft released Word 1.0 for Macintosh. However, with the rise and dominance of Windows in the 1990s, there has been fears that Microsoft might stop developing Macintosh versions of key products, notably Microsoft Office.Therefore, Mac BU was established in 1997 with a five-year commitment by Microsoft to continue developing and supporting Macintosh software – a pledge most recently renewed on January 10 2006 at the Macworld Conference & Expo.

Trivia

The Unit is not the sole developer of Macintosh software within Microsoft. Some software titles, such as Windows Media Player for Mac, were developed by other teams in Microsoft.

Until recently, the Mac BU had all major configurations of Macintosh computers in their testing laboratories.