As with all things relating to Microsoft, it is not about what their customers want, it is about extending Microsoft's monopoly power into every market in which it competes. Yes, I know people use Excel as a database, but I don't want to, and Access is more work than it's worth for casual use. Check out some of the comments from ZDNet readers about this point. Several people suggested that Access is designed to be a consumer database. The only reason they would say this is because they have not used FileMaker.
Access is a convoluted pile of capable crap that is extremely difficult to master.
Better yet, you don't have to master it just to use it, something that Access can hardly claim. It's even available for Windows. Outlook doesn't do a very good job of managing data. I have no comment on this. Please make some sort of peace with Real so everyone can read everyone else's media formats.