Microsoft financing helps an organization be strategic with their it purchases in the. Microsoft announces changes to software assurance benefits. It shops with software assurance will find virtual desktop licensing more affordable, thanks to changes in microsoft licensing. Servers self hosted applications office online services and office online server oos. As of february 1, 2020 many businesses will no longer qualify for microsoft software assurance benefits. In anticipation of our upcoming microsoft licensing seminar in new york on 21st october 2015, our analyst david foxen interviewed steven kelley director of software licensing advisors and one of the expert speakers at our new york event his session software assurance placing bets on microsoft s future will delve into why he thinks microsoft software assurance customers.
Models for assessing the cost and value of software assurance. Type your software assurance access id and email address you use to access the vlsc and click continue. Volume licensing programs comparison chart microsoft. Organisations such as businesses that purchase software through microsoft volume licensing must normally purchase software assurance as a separate option. Software pricing trends 28 january 2003 alvin park, jonathan mein document type. Enables customers to use sql server licences with software assurance or qualifying subscription licences to pay a reduced rate base rate on sql database vcorebased options such as managed instance, vcorebased single database and vcorebased elastic pool. The 2019 edition picks up right where its predecessor left off. Expert offers tips on microsoft s software assurance program. Microsoft software assurance for volume licensing helps boost organizational productivity with 24x7 support, deployment planning services, and technical training, the latest microsoft software releases, unique technologies, plus support for cloud services adoption, all in one costeffective program. Use license advisor to research microsoft volume licensing products, programs and pricing. Actual savings may vary based on region, instance size, and performance tier.
Microsoft rethinks unified pricing strategy infoworld. Microsoft volume licensing reference guide microsoft download. Microsoft to offer premium assurance for servers adding 6 years of patch support. Software assurance training benefits help boost productivity by providing training to ensure effective and efficient deployment, management, support, and adoption of new microsoft software without impacting your training budget. Unified support, with pricing based on an organizations software assurance payments, purportedly resulted in cost increases for organizations. License mobility through software assurance gives microsoft volume licensing customers the flexibility to deploy eligible server applications with active software assurance on azure. Request payment from microsoft existing partners after redeeming planning services vouchers, you must invoice microsoft for payment. To submit an invoice to microsoft through savb, follow the instructions in step 8 of the workflow. Microsoft volume licensing microsoft software assurance. But now, amid a terrible downturn and rising competition, it is shifting to a scrappier approach, cutting prices on a variety of fronts, according to the businessweek article, microsoft s aggressive new pricing. At this time, software assurance training voucher satv pay rates are not available on this page. Software assurance benefits included with microsoft donations. How to use or renew your software assurance benefits techsoup. Software assurance is a collection of benefits for microsoft products.
Microsoft makes no assurance that software assurance customers will get access to new products, even though they pay 29 percent of the full desktop software price, annually. Volume licensing guide enrollment for education solutions ees. A strategy in its synonym is a preparation for longterm battle plans or making plans to achieve a goal. Buy a microsoft sql server enterprise edition software assurance 1 server or other database software at. Pricing strategies of software vendors springerlink. June 14, 2016 upperedge no comments share i recently conducted a meeting with a cio to discuss his companys options going into its microsoft renewal negotiation, and he acknowledged that he, like most of my clients, was largely in the dark about the costs and benefits of software. Microsoft adds software assurance to products and services. In support of the nonprofit community, microsoft has generously included software assurance with virtually all of. He has been with microsoft for 15 years and has worked in multiple roles in licensing and engineering. Mar 24, 2017 go to microsoft software assurance support page and click on submit request.
Go to microsoft software assurance support page and click on submit request. Pricing is a function of marketing and determines, among other things, your market position. These microsoft training vouchers may be part of your software assurance sa benefits. In this context we discuss the six parameters formation of prices, structure of payment flow, assessment base, price discrimination, price bundling, and dynamic pricing strategies. Microsoft software assurance gets customers to pay in advance for products about which they often know little, including whether theyll want to use it, which is a remarkable feat of salesmanship. Spa185198 in general, budgeting 5 percent annual increases should cover anticipated cost hikes for all new licenses purchased with or without software assurance through open and select programs. Get an understanding of how major vendors like microsoft, oracle and others are. Lets calculate the odds on the microsoft software assurance gamble. Microsoft rejiggers windows 10 enterprise subscriptions. The number of support incidents vary by customer and are based on the type of volume licensing agreement and qualifying products.
Write a one page paper about microsoft pricing strategy from the point of view of porters competitive. Volume licensing the official blog of shi international. A company without sa will hold onto its software for as long as possible, which ultimately also doesnt benefit microsoft. Software assurance training voucher guide software assurance training voucher guide for benefits managers 3 benefit days vs.
After redeeming planning services vouchers, you must invoice microsoft for payment. Microsoft rejiggers windows 10 enterprise subscriptions, pricing microsoft is revamping the subscription offerings by recalibrating prices and renaming the per deviceper user offers so theyre. Software assurance working out costs over 4 year period. Microsoft pricing strategies and competitive advantage. Microsoft offers software assurance only with its volume licensing programs. This can be seen in the promotional pricing and discounts theyre currently offering to customers. The core premise behind sa is to give users the ability to spread payments over several years, while offering free upgrades to newer versions during that time period.
Microsoft changes pricing and discounting policies for. Software assurance training vouchers satv microsoft. Microsoft s software assurance gives you automatic access to new technology and provides productivity benefits, support, tools, and training to help deploy and use software efficiently. Microsoft sql server a deeper look continued flexera blog.
Ten years ago this month, microsoft introduced the most controversial licensing program in its history. Microsoft on tuesday added the software assurance licensing option. Learning partner support microsoft s learning partners can help create an optimal training strategy for your organization and help you plan the most effective way to use training vouchers. On the create an incident select a payment option page, select use my software assurance agreement. Steven, i n simple terms, what exactly is software assurance and why is it so important with microsoft licenses sk. Microsoft software assurance changes to favor fasttrack. To renew your software assurance benefits, request a standalone software assurance product through techsoup up to 90 days before your original benefits expire. Software assurance by product microsoft volume licensing. Sql server licensing secrets microsoft doesnt want you to. Software assurance planning services in partner center. Get a full quote that you can share with colleagues or your reseller.
Microsoft announced today changes to their software assurance sa benefits offerings that will be gradually rolled out starting in february 2020 and fully implemented by january 2022. Guaranteed pricing microsoft and learning partners have set pricing that is included with your software assurance. Software assurance provides access to enterprise offerings and unique use rights to extend the windows experience across your organization. Find out about the basics of microsoft volume licensing programs, which include software assurance, shared source, open license, select license, select plus, enterprise agreement, enterprise subscription agreement, and product keys.
The best way to handle an audit is to prepare for one, and not to rely on microsofts software asset management sam tools, which invariably lead to higher customer costs. Software assurance programs partner center microsoft docs. Software assurance is optional and cloud services are not available. Nov 27, 20 software assurance working out costs over 4 year period.
Microsoft to offer premium assurance for servers adding 6. The software assurance benefits calculator is an online tool to calculate estimated software assurance benefits that customers may be entitled to. Payments are handled through the software assurance voucher benefit savb online payment tool. Oct 22, 2009 therefore, this article provides an overview of pricing models for software. Dec 23, 2014 if you are in the market for microsoft licenses, one question you should be asking is. Do microsoft customers really need software assurance. How many software assurance support incidents do i get with software assurance. It also indicates or is ideally derived from the type of customer you want to do business with. Software assurance is a comprehensive volume licensing program that includes a unique set of technologies, services, and rights to help you deploy, manage. Pricing doesnt exist in a vacuum and is therefore not something you can tackle on its own. Microsoft software assurance sa is a microsoft maintenance program aimed at business users who use microsoft windows, microsoft office, and other server and desktop applications. Eliminating sa on some products can lead to savings.
The program covers microsoft technologies and services and includes new product version rights, technical and enduser training, deployment planning, and support. Currently gregor is focused on the design of the next generation of sa offerings for volume licensing. Select the product and problem for which you need support. Organizations can save above retail boxed software prices when they. Jul 25, 2019 no one likes to leave money on the table.
Pricing overviewhow azure pricing works microsoft azure. Microsoft volume licensing is the most costeffective, flexible, and manageable way to acquire microsoft software and cloud services. Software assurance benefits for windows include a core set of technologies, services, and use rights to help improve productivity, streamline software deployments, and reduce costs in a variety of ways across devices. The main problem with this approach is that it tends to leave a lot of money on the table. Not every microsoft customer needs software assurance on all of the vendors offerings. The phased retirement of software assurance training voucher benefit, and putting a major effort into improving access to new skills programs and platforms.
If the benefits manager creates a sa training voucher worth more days than the course length, the extra days automatically revert back to the organizations pool of training days after the voucher is paid to the learning partner. Software assurance is only available through volume licensing and is purchased when you buy or renew a volume licensing agreement. If not, expect office 365 pricing increase microsoft will institute a 15% price hike for office 365 enterprise volume subscribers without a software assurance plan. But if everything is kept on a spreadsheet, then i think that is worth the 9k saving just to. Actual savings may vary based on region, instance size and performance tier. Implementing test strategies software quality assurance introduction strategies are simple but executing them is not. The winwin of valuebased pricing strategies microsoft. Mpsa is a new licensing approach for organizations with more than 250. Participation in software assurance programs, including software assurance training vouchers satv and planning services, provides you an opportunity to grow your business with microsoft enterprise customers. Software assurance coverage runs to the end of the agreement term. The phased retirement of software assurance deployment planning services benefit.
Where this strategy will prove more challenging is with shared devices. Expert offers tips on microsofts software assurance program. If you have software assurance on windows e3 per device, moving. The ideal model for calculating the cost and value of software assurance may be one of these, or it may be a new model that builds on the common features that we have discussed. Microsoft uses several strategies and tactics to lead customers away from perpetual software licenses and. Worldrenowned expert on microsoft licensing strategies. In my last post blog post, microsoft sql server licensing a deeper look, we looked at different use cases of microsoft sql server such as environmental considerations, multiplexing, sql server embedded in 3 rd party applications and intranets. Microsoft volume licensing product licensing search. Should i buy software assurance with my microsoft licenses.
Fundamental characteristics of digital goods are indestructibility, transmutability, and reproducibility choi et al. As a software assurance training vouchers partner, microsoft will compensate you to provide instructorled, technical classroom training. To achieve this vision, microsoft recently announced a set of programmatic and productcentric pricing updates. Actual regional pricing and program discounts may apply.
For desktop products mainly windows and office sa costs 29% of the license price each year. We have presented a survey of available models for bsi readers to consider. And yet, if youre a microsoft enterprise agreement ea customer, chances are youre doing just that in the form of free microsoft training vouchers. Customers with high purchasing volume may also qualify for premium benefits, including unlimited problem resolution support. Software assurance benefits were introduced by microsoft as a way of delivering greater value to its customer base outside of the commonly perceived version upgrade use cases. The first step is understanding what software assurance is, so in this post i will try to explain it in a clear and concise manner. Review the microsoft product terms, check your benefits, or contact your microsoft account manager or microsoft partner for more details. Save time and money with the right tools, training, and support to help empower your people, optimize your technology, and unlock the full potential. Pricing, i use multiple resellers but main ones are softcat. Changes to microsofts licensing pricing model with take effect october 1. I wont have it all, ready for ms to do they sam licensing. Why microsoft software assurance customers never win. Save time and money with the right tools, training, and support to help empower your people, optimize your technology, and unlock the full potential of your investments in microsoft technologies. Deciding on microsoft s software assurance sa option isnt getting any easier, to hear an.
Furthermore, we refer to recent software delivery models, such as software as a service. Microsoft updates to software assurance sa, beginning. Software assurance training voucher software assurance. Software assurance microsoft partner 500 equivalent employees. Software assurance planning services learn more visit software assurance to learn more about planning services and other software assurance benefits your organizations software assurance administrator can visit the microsoft volume licensing service center or. Microsoft learn how the newest microsoft products, programs, and volume licensing changes could affect your it environment. Increasing investment in fasttrack as the primary way to help customers adopt microsoft cloud services. Gregor kneitz is a senior product manager in microsoft licensing and pricing owning software assurance as a program. Theyre segmented differently, and again, fixed pricing produces no incentive for customers to purchase more. Sce offers great pricing and benefits for server and cloud products, including discounts on new licenses, software assurance. Q2 2020 msft premierunified support research analysts. Microsoft has changed its windows licensing, making desktop virtualization more affordable for it shops with software assurance. Jan 26, 2010 in addition, he said it shops dont upgrade because of high costs, and microsoft doesnt reward its loyal customers with discounts.
Software assurance benefits calculated by this tool are an estimate only, and the results generated do not constitute an offer. Microsofts cloud strategy, as shown by major licensing changes in october 2019, is bound to get some push back as the company straddles a line between onpremises it and cloud. Savings exclude software assurance costs, which may vary based on volume licensing agreement. The future of software pricing excellence 2 at a time when the enterprise software sales model is shifting from productbased to portfoliobased and customers are adjusting their purchasing decisions to include their perception of added business value, vendors can no longer consider their pricing models incidental. It provides the greatest flexibility for how your organization uses windows because it includes access to enterprise offerings and use rights that are not available through other licensing programs. Multiply 29% by three years, the term of the usual volumelicensing agreement, and thats 87% of the license cost. Microsoft online services as your it strategy evolves to include the many benefits of cloud computing, microsoft can help you extend the capabilities. With software assurance, you receive access to new versions of licensed software released during the term of your agreement to deploy at your own pace. Sql server licensing secrets microsoft doesnt want you to know presented by paul degroot. If your organization has or plans to invest in sa, you will need to understand how these changes will impact your ability to accrue, redeem, and consume these benefits moving forward.
Not only will it negotiate on pricing or offer tailored version of its software for various countries, it will also talk to governments about jobs the. Since august 1, 2018 microsoft premier support customers have seen a significant and steady decline in both the quality and time to resolution when microsoft announced their transition from microsoft premier to the unified model. Software assurance microsoft software assurance for volume licensing helps boost productivity across your organization by helping you to get. The value and benefit gained under microsoft volume licensing programs and through use of microsoft software and services may vary by customer. Microsoft partners software assurance benefits chart software assurance software assurance overview volume licensing service center vlsc vlsc software assurance guide vlsc sign in to microsoft business center. Customers should refer to their agreements for a full understanding of their rights and obligations under microsoft s volume licensing programs. Microsoft has long enjoyed olympian profit margins, using its monopoly power to maintain prices on its software even in tough times. Software assurance by benefit microsoft volume licensing. In 2008 we conducted a workshop on business case, and all indications are that there.
Software assurance benefits microsoft volume licensing. How will recent microsoft price changes affect your organization. Apr 03, 2020 software assurance for volume licensing offers a range of tools and resources to help your company deploy, manage, and maximize your volume licensing purchases. Effective july 1, 2016, in markets where the mpsa is available, microsoft no longer accepts new orders and software assurance renewals through existing commercial select plus agreements at the customers next agreement anniversary date. Microsoft vlsc software assurance guide welcome to software assurance software assurance for volume licensing offers a range of tools and resources to help your company deploy, manage, and maximize your volume licensing purchases. We are not in a position to recommend a specific model. Technology institute the future of software pricing. You make significant investments in it, and software assurance from microsoft helps you take fullest advantage of the value your investments can bring. Software assurance for volume licensing includes a range of benefits that. Software assurance includes a core set of benefits to help improve workforce productivity, streamline software deployment, and reduce costs in a variety of ways across devices. Why microsoft software assurance customers never win the. This guide can help you understand the microsoft volume licensing enrollment for education solutions ees subscription offering.
How long does my microsoft software assurance last. The answer depends on your situation and what you want to achieve with your purchase. Software assurance swa is defined as the level of confidence that software is free from vulnerabilities, either intentionally designed into the software or accidentally inserted at any time during its lifecycle, and that the software functions in the intended manner. Microsoft dynamics ax 2012 r3 licensing guide 2016. Microsoft offers a range of product specific benefits such as the ones outlined for sql server below in table 1 sql server software assurance benefits overview. Software assurance has an annual cost of 29% of the license price for desktop products e. Thats why i like to focus more on valuebased pricing strategies. Software assurance sa is microsofts discounted offer to prepurchase future upgrades of the software title one carries sa on. Ninety days prior to expiration, your vlsc account owner should receive an email from microsoft saying that the benefits are expiring soon. As software is a digital good, the economic theory of digital products provides a first starting point for the development of pricing strategies for software providers. With this software assurance benefit, there is no need to purchase new licenses and no associated mobility fees so, you can easily deploy existing licenses on the.
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