Microsoft implemented significant changes over the past couple of months. As industry experts, we can walk you through everything businesses need to know.
What is the New Commerce Experience?
Recently, the tech titan announced an entirely New Commerce Experience (NCE) to its Cloud Solution Provider (CSP), similar to the 2019 Microsoft Azure upgrade.
NCE is a per-seat model for Windows 365, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Power Platform. NCE provides fundamental changes in how some customers (both users and managed service providers) interact with Microsoft.
Microsoft has made a long-term investment in the program designed to help its partners simplify licensing, customize the transactions to customer preferences, and boost partners’ business growth and return on investment.
Are These Changes Automatic?
Each business using NCE will need to migrate their Windows 365, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, and Power Platform accounts to the new platform.
Available Incentives
Microsoft is so certain that customers will want to migrate to the NCE that they are offering two price incentives between January and March 2022.
Customers with monthly subscriptions can receive a 20% premium through June 2022. Those with an annual term will receive a 5% discount. These incentives apply to all new seat-based commercial offers for subscriptions up to 2,400 seats, excluding Windows 365.
NCE Term Options
Term options remain monthly, annually, or multi-year. You will have the option to auto-renew or not. Your company’s renewal date for any newly added seats will be the same as your original renewal date. If you change your renewal type from monthly to annual, the next month’s reconciliation will reflect the difference.
NCE Cancelation Options
Microsoft’s cancelation period is now three days, including the day of purchase. As a result, if you cancel on day 1, you will be fully refunded. A pro-rated refund is offered if cancelation occurs on days 2 or 3. Be aware, though, that the 72-hour cancelation period will be reset for the renewal term.
What Should I Know About Microsoft 365 Price Increases?
This past August, Microsoft announced price increases for some of their commercial products, reflecting the culmination of innovative enhancements made over the past decade. These new prices roll out on March 1, 2022, and the company claims this is the first substantive uptick to their price point in the last ten years.
Why a Price Increase?
According to Microsoft, the invested time and resources spent innovating and improving upgrades warrant a price increase. In a nutshell, these improvements impact:
- Automation, including the use of AI
- Communications and collaboration (more applications available on Microsoft Teams, for example)
- Enhanced security and compliance
What Products Are Affected?
- Microsoft 365 Business Basic: 20% increase
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium: 10% increase
- Office 365 E1: 25% increase
- Office 365 E3: 15% increase
- Office 365 ES: 8.6% increase
- Microsoft 365 E3: 12.5% increase
These increases are global, with some adjustments for local market conditions. There are currently no changes to pricing planned for non-profit, education, and consumer products.
Introducing Microsoft 365
Along with the price changes, Microsoft also announced a rebrand from Office 365 to Microsoft 365. The Office suite includes two dozen apps available by subscription (Microsoft 365) or as a one-time purchase, aka Office 365.
Why a Name Change?
Microsoft has been using Microsoft 365 and Office 365 to describe the same bundle of tools. As a result, they decided to unify the product name under the Microsoft 365 banner. Office 365 has been available as a one-time purchase since early October 2021.
Benefits of Microsoft 365
With hybrid or remote work being the new normal, Microsoft 365 improvements come at the perfect time. Here are some of the benefits Microsoft 365 offers businesses:
- Enhanced productivity, whether working remotely or on-site
- Document sharing and collaboration in the cloud
- Chat, host meetings, and calls
- Enhanced security against cyberthreats
- Keep customer data secure
- HIPAA compliant
- Easily manage users and devices
- Improved productivity
- Save on IT costs
- Reduce the cost of security risks
We Can Help You Navigate These Microsoft Changes
SinglePoint Global is here to help you through these changes and recommend the best solutions for your business. Contact us today!
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