back to article Microsoft loosens strings on Office 365, drops kimono on upgrade options

Microsoft has unveiled the first in a series of planned updates to its Office 365 licensing plans for potentially easier upgrades. The Office 365 blog has outlined the options, announced at Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference in July as “transition SKUs”, for users to upgrade. The Switch plans come with certain …

COMMENTS

This topic is closed for new posts.
  1. ElNumbre
    Stop

    Inflexible flexibility

    The glaring omission seems to be the downgrade rights - if two months in you find that mid is inappropriate for your business, I'm betting they'll not allow you to downgrade your upgradings.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Inflexible flexibility

      contract law assumes that a business is capable of working out the pros and cons of an agreement before entering in to it.

      1. Kevin Johnston

        Re: Inflexible flexibility

        and lawyers are there to make sure it is as difficult as possible to determine the exact meaning of phrases which appear to be real English and which suggest an obvious meaning* which is favourable** to the person buying the product.

        *obvious meaning is a Trademark of obscure licensing Inc

        ** requires Platinum level subscription which is not transferable from the person identified in the original purchase order and may not be available in your country. Failure to maintain previously unmentioned monthly payments reverts membership to Gold level for which different terms apply, see error 404 website for details

      2. Fihart

        Re: Inflexible flexibility

        Normal logic assumes that any business paying £80+ per annum* for Office isn't capable working out the pros and cons of an agreement before entering into it.

        *when a student can buy Office outright for about the same price -- or Open Office is free.

  2. Gil Grissum

    NO THANKS

    Two different companies that I've contracted for this year, are avoiding Office 365 like the plague. I'm avoiding it too. Office 2011 and Office 2008 on my Mac work quite nicely, while I'm still nursing Office 2007 on my PC. No need for the latest ribbon interface crap version with more nonsense I won't use than anything that I will.

    1. Charlie Clark Silver badge

      Re: NO THANKS

      Admittedly, I've not looked at Office 365 but it seems to me extremely ambitious to try and shift such a key component of many people's business software onto NSA sponsored servers. I can imagine companies might buy into their own hosted versions (give them more control and cut out file-servers) except that they won't trust MS to deliver anything usable in the browser if they've had previous experience of something like Sharepoint.

      But at the moment I don't think the technology is really there for large scale browser apps that can also save to local file systems.

  3. Abot13

    MS office? no matter what form... NO.... using Libre Office now and happy with that at no cost, no contract and no legal bs

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Going forward.

    My local water company has a new business plan, I'm no longer going to have my own toilet or any waste plumbing I'm just going to rent one as needed. They'll deliver it by road so as long as the traffic is not bad I should be fine.

    The advantage is that I'll never have to clean the loo again as they will sort that all out for me and even change the seat once a year.

    I still need to pay for it while I'm on holiday, or away on work, but I will save on bleach of course.

    I'm looking forward to the new plan and hope the other services can design some similar set up's so I don't need to own a front door or glass for the house, just rent those as needed, window cleaning can be such a bore.

    Brave new world eh nurse?

    I'm excited.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    SKUs by Microsoft

    When It comes to Microsoft and licenesing, I can only ever think that I'm getting screwed. Why is it in Microsoft stories about licensing they all refer SKUs. They just leave a bad taste in my mouth...I don't know why.

    1. Anonymous IV

      Re: SKUs by Microsoft

      > They just leave a bad taste in my mouth...I don't know why.

      Perhaps you feel that you have been SKreUed?

  6. Pascal Monett Silver badge

    I can't help but think

    that this is the true beginning of the end of Microsoft Office.

    Twenty years from now, we just might be looking at MS Office the same way we look at WordPerfect today.

    And everyone will use LibreOffice, because Microsoft will have thoroughly disgusted users from its own product with its abusive license techniques.

    Oh sure, there will be the Fortune 1000 companies that will do everything with MS products as they always have done. But everyone else will just use the tools that they need and not purchase a gigantic toolbox they don't need.

    Of course, I am probably wrong, but I'm convinced MS is not making its life easier with this scheme. You can't beat free for price, and if its good enough for your needs, it will do. LibreOffice is good enough for personal use, and more and more people are starting to realize it. If MS loses the individual demographic, the professional one will follow sooner or later. MS knows that, they did it in reverse (and still do, with their ultra-low-price student licences).

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Monkey Man Makes Exceedingly Bad Cakes…

    As for dropping his kimono… Please! I’ve just eaten.

    As for Office 365:

    Do turkeys vote for Christmas?

    Do holidaymakers upgrade from “Caribbean All Inclusive” to “Rhyl Bed and Breakfast”?

    Why wasn’t it called Office 24x7?

    What happens in a leap year?

    Do I care that Redmond has lost the will to live?

This topic is closed for new posts.

Other stories you might like