Well, this was inevitable. Looks like annual is (and in my opinion always has been) the way to go. Why would you want to deal with this 12 times a year rather tan once. Of course for resellers this may present an accounting issue if you’ve been invoicing your clients monthly. Lots of contract to update.

By JoAnn Hodgdon – Unless you have been paying close attention, Microsoft quietly announced in August of 2022, that it would increase MS Office subscriptions with a 20% price hike for customers choosing to stay month-to-month with their Microsoft Cloud product software subscriptions.

It should be noted that Microsoft has not increased its pricing in over 10 years. The primary cause for the rise in cost is increased security needed to protect your data and information.

According to Microsoft, “since its launch a decade ago, Office 365 has grown to over 300 million commercial paid seats. Along the way, we have continuously re-invested to meet the changing needs of our customers. Four years ago, we introduced Microsoft 365 to bring together the best of Office, Windows, and Enterprise Mobility and Security (EMS). That same year we added Microsoft Teams as the only integrated solution where you can meet, chat, call, collaborate, and automate business processes—right in the flow of work. In fact, since introducing Microsoft 365 we have added 24 apps1 to the suites—Microsoft Teams, Power Apps, Power BI, Power Automate, Stream, Planner, Visio, OneDrive, Yammer, and Whiteboard—and have released over 1,400 new features and capabilities in three key areas”.  Those three areas are communication and collaboration (Microsoft Teams), Security and Compliance and AI and Automation.

With the new pricing model, subscribers will be unable to opt out of annual subscriptions, even if you are midway through the term. i.e. if you lose employees, the subscription is not adaptable. Smaller companies that have been able to purchase licensing per seat in the past, are the ones at risk. You will still pay for the seats you committed to with your annual subscription. Those companies most affected post-pandemic are trying to save cash, especially after Microsoft increased the price of Microsoft 365 in August of 2021. Beginning in March, new orders will have to go through the new pricing model, “New Commerce Experience” and as of July renewals will be committed to the new model subscription. Read On: