With the new year comes new changes, especially for businesses that are using Microsoft 365 as the basis for their operations. On January 10th, the tech giant launched the newest Microsoft licensing changes and promotions, which they’re calling the Microsoft New Commerce Experience. Right now, we’re in the initial promo period, which is set to last until June 2022 for monthly term offers and March 2022 for annual term offers.
If you don’t understand the basics of these new licensing changes, you could miss out on this time-based promotion. Today, we’ll run you through the important details you need to know and show how your business could benefit from these changes.
What Are the New Microsoft Licensing Changes?
The newest set of licensing changes announced for 2022 is being called Microsoft NCE (New Commerce Experience). It’s a new per-seat model pricing structure for Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, Power Platform, and Window 365 through the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) program. The program launched officially on January 10th.
The Benefits of Microsoft NCE
While the details about changes to Microsoft’s licensing may be complex, the benefits are fairly straightforward. These changes offer a simplified buying process for their customers, with all their buying options listed in one contract. This simplified contract makes it easier to understand your plan and adapt and optimize as necessary, offering meaningful cost savings for your business.
Key Dates You Need to Know
Trying to track all the incoming changes? Here are some key dates you need to know.
January 10th: New Commerce Experience launches.
March 1st: Price increases for the following products take effect:
- Office 365 E1
- Office 365 E3
- Office 365 E5
- Microsoft 365 E3
SMB:
- Microsoft 365 Business Basic
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium
March 10th: The last day subscriptions can be renewed on the legacy platform.
June 30th: The last day subscriptions can be renewed on the legacy platform.
July 1st: The last day that legacy subscriptions can be renewed in New Commerce.
October 1st: Promotional incentives are only available for NCE transactions.
December 31st: This is the last day legacy CSP incentives for seat-based offers (such as Microsoft 365 or Dynamics 365) can be extended to.
What’s Your Next Step?
Not sure what to do in light of all these changes? First, review and evaluate your current services and contracts. Are you using every product to its fullest capacity?
Once you have a better understanding of your current usage and needs, take a look at when your licenses and contracts end. From there, you can use these dates to help you determine whether there are any promotions that you can take advantage of to drive down your monthly or annual fees.
Not Sure Where to Start? Let the Experts From Enterprise Visions Help
The new Microsoft licensing changes offer businesses the opportunity to re-evaluate how they use this technology, and design a contract that better fits their needs and budget. However, doing this alone can be complicated. There are so many dates to track, and the right solution could be missed if you don’t know where to look.
Enterprise Visions is here to help. Our experts can help you track dates and will work with you to evaluate the best plan for your needs. Get in touch today to learn more about how we can help simplify your digital transformation.