iWork to Become a Web Application at Macworld?

9to5Mac claims that Apple will be announcing at Macworld that the next version of iWork will be composed of web-based applications. According to the rumor site, that means the future versions of Numbers, Pages and Keynote will be entirely browser based. (Note that this does not necessarily mean that native Mac versions will not also co-exist.)

Apple's move into web-based applications has been clear with the release of MobileMe's extensive Mail and Address Book applications composed entirely out of web-based technologies such as Javascript. In fact, there had previously been talk of an entire "Webkit-based" platform after Apple had adopted the SproutCore framework for use in MobileMe.

Developers have been constantly pushing the boundaries of what a web application can accomplish. 280 Slides is an example of a browser-based version of Keynote/Powerpoint written by former Apple employees.