It would be a big move for Nadella, who replaced Steve Ballmer to become Microsoft's third-ever CEO earlier this year. He is set to address industry execs at a San Francisco event later this month.
Microsoft could not immediately be reached for comment, but we caught up with Wes Miller, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft, to get his take on the rumors. He told us right now the iPad version of Office is that -- a rumor. But he's not ruling it out.
"The reality is that Office for the iPad is sort of a no-brainer in that they need something on that platform for customers who want to edit Office documents on the iPad," Miller said. "This will give them that answer."
Miller, for one, has been suspecting for a long while that the market would witness a range of updates to Office 365 during Microsoft's third quarter and early into the fourth. So far, he's been right. Microsoft recently unveiled the Office 365 Personal Edition.
"We likely see this Office for iPad app tied back to Office 365 subscriptions. In other words, the app itself may well be free but there probably will be requirements for a 365 subscription," Miller said. "This would reflect what we saw with them announcing a Personal Edition the other day and the hints that an app would be coming."
At least one financial analyst has supposed Microsoft could be leaving billions of dollars on the table by neglecting the iPad.
Indeed, according to Adam Holt, an...