Good things donât last forever. Thereâs often more than a grain of truth in a clichĂ©. Having reflected on the news that prices are going up for Microsoft 365, hereâs why we think the new changes probably make sense:
Since the last price rise â less than five years ago â Microsoft has added plenty of new features. And weâre not just talking incremental updates, weâre talking entirely new products like Teams.
If Teams hadnât been bundled in with 365 for free, we think that most customers would have happily paid out for it separately. Given you know what over the last year and a half.
In our recent Cloud Talk podcast, Rich Gibbons made a good analogy. The cost of his boxset bingeing has almost doubled since first signing up to Netflix. But because the quality and quantity of the content has gone up too, it feels justified.
So, as long as this doesnât become a regular move from Microsoft, we think the price increase makes sense. Weâve all had it pretty good for a long time.
In truth, Microsoft 365 offers a lot of value, even with the increase. (If you didnât know, this kicked in on the 15th March 2022). Commercial licences only; no changes to consumer or education products).
For example, thanks to the addition of things like Planner, a lot of customers have been able to stop paying for separate tools like Project. So, thereâs been a net-cost saving there already.
Alongside the 365 increase, Microsoft announced changes to the CSP programme to streamline product subscriptions. These include:
There are slight positives in this announcement: the launch of communication credits and new multi-geo capabilities. But itâs set more than a few alarm bells ringingâŠ
If customers sign up for an annual or multi-year term and then go out of business, their CSP has to cover the cost of that agreement. The same applies to Westcoast Cloud too. If any of our partners go bust, weâre liable for any outstanding contract costs.
The Microsoft 365 price hike applies to customers taking out an annual agreement. So we have to assume the monthly term offer will be higher still â in other words, a double increase.
And, unlike the annual and multi-year options, thereâll be no price protection for pay-monthly customers. Further increases could therefore become a regular (Netflix-like) occurrence.
Cloud computing has always offered the ability to flex up and down. So, some of these CSP changes feel like a backwards step.
Thereâs a period of 7 calendar days after signing up to cancel or make changes. So if youâve ordered too many licences, youâll have to pay for them all until the end of the term. You can add more, of course! But you canât reduce. Similarly, you can upgrade products (e.g. from E3 to E5), but you canât downgrade.
It does feel like the benefits are stacked in Microsoftâs favour. And the goal of creating a âsimplified purchasing experienceâ is conversely creating a lot of confusion for partners. Weâre still waiting for clarity on a lot of T&Cs ourselves.
What do you think about the announcements? How will they affect your business? Weâre always up for a chat about the intricacies of Microsoft licencing â so do get in touch!
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