Late last week Microsoft announced over on their Volume Licensing Blog that in 2017 they will introduce a new program, Enterprise Advantage, that will allow commercial customers to purchase products on the Microsoft Products and Services Agreement (MPSA).
According to Richard Smith, the GM of Microsoft's Worldwide Licensing & Pricing program, this change is all about delivering convenience to the customer as the Redmond company continues to change how they handle product licensing.
Smith says that beginning in 2017, Enterprise Advantage will allow customers to purchase for their entire organization through the MPSA and provide the following benefits:
- Mix perpetual and subscription software with cloud services like Office 365, Azure, and CRM Online, organization-wide
- Purchase any time, whatever you need, with no additional enrollments
- Enjoy budget predictability and price protection
- Buy how you want, taking advantage of your combined purchases across the organization to maximize value
- More easily manage your assets, including true-up and true-down of subscriptions and services, to meet ever-changing business needs
Compared to the Enterprise Agreements that are currently used, this new program will still deliver the same pricing and coverage but increases the flexibility of aligning your companies needs to your purchasing requirements.
In the same blog post, Smith also mentions two new policy changes that became effective on 01 July 2016 to help customers with their product licensing:
- Retirement of Select Plus. Existing commercial Select Plus customers will no longer be able to place orders through their Select Plus agreement beginning at their next anniversary date. Instead, the MPSA offers a more modern licensing option that enables customers to buy licenses for online services, software, and Software Assurance through a simpler and more flexible agreement.
- Increase in the minimum Enterprise Agreement (EA) commitment. For commercial customers signing new Enterprise Enrollments or Enterprise Subscription Enrollments, the minimum commitment increases today to 500 from 250 users or devices*. For new commercial customers with 250 to 499 users or devices, we recommend the MPSA, or the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program for those looking for partner-managed services. MPSA and CSP are the fastest and most flexible ways to buy from Microsoft.
For more information about Enterprise Advantage or these new policy changes be sure to visit the Microsoft Volume Licensing Blog.
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