Here is the summary of an update on SharePoint 2016 as published by MSDN recently.
1. Timeline : SharePoint Server 2016 will become generally be available in Q2 2016, with a public beta planned for Q4 2015.
You can request access to the public Beta program here.
2. Microsoft Confirmed to deliver On-premises releases of SharePoint for the foreseeable future. Microsoft Confirmed they will Continue to have customers who choose a combination of on-premises, cloud and hybrid deployments for many years to come. (Putting all SharePoint is dead rumors to end).
3. In SharePoint 2016, MS is paying attention to trends in content management, team collaboration and user experiences across devices.
4. Microsoft with SharePoint 2016 will also focus on how Cloud can be blended into existing on-premises scenarios in new and compelling ways. In particular, MS is focused on delivering value to customers as part of their on-premises deployments, while at the same time making it easier to take advantage of cloud innovation thru hybrid deployments of SharePoint Server with Office 365.
5. SharePoint Server 2016 will deliver enhancements and new capabilities in three major areas
Improved user experiences
- SharePoint Server 2016 will provide improved mobile access to content, people and applications along with touch-based experiences across devices and screen sizes.
- It will make file storage and document collaboration more people-centric (available either as part of your on-premises deployment or through a hybrid implementation of SharePoint Server 2016 and Office 365.. possibly powered by Office Graph and Delve).
- Richer integration with Exchange and Yammer
- Broadening access and management of new types of media thru integration with Office 365 Video as examples.
Cloud-inspired infrastructure
- With SharePoint 2016, MS is focused on enabling a broad ecosystem of solutions and partners through a standardized set of APIs and experiences that span on-premises and the cloud.
Compliance and reporting
- SharePoint Server 2016 will provide a broad array of features and capabilities designed to make certain that sensitive information remains protected with investments in DLP.
- New scenarios to enable data encryption, and compliance tools that span on-premises servers and Office 365 while providing a balance between enabling user self-service and ensuring content usage adheres to corporate policy.
Source: Learning SharePoint Blog