How do you ensure your Microsoft deal doesn't end up costing way more than anticipated? After doing thousands of Microsoft deals over the last dozen or so years, we know all too well that the hard work starts after the deal is signed. In many people's minds, "the deal" is complete when negotiations are done, deal terms and pricing agreed and contracts and PO's executed. But in fact, "the deal" can't be complete until all promised goods and services are delivered, on time, at or below estimated cost, and with suitable quality and acceptance by the client. Unfortunately, in many cases, the supplier's view of the deal is conversely focused on ...
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Satya Nadella is Microsoft’s next CEO confirming, again, that Microsoft views “the cloud” as the company’s strongest bet for future growth and continued dominance of the enterprise software world. Previously, he was executive vice-president of Microsoft's Cloud and Enterprise group – and that should be all the information that enterprise IT managers need to know about where Microsoft wants to go in the future (taking enterprise customers along for the ride of course). I think this truly is a key inflection point in Microsoft’s history, even beyond the obvious changing of the guard from the old Gates / Ballmer duo, and the rather distinct ...
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Microsoft is gradually rolling out an entirely new volume licensing agreement structure for enterprise customers, previewed in blog posts here: Transformation on the Horizon for Microsoft Volume Licensing and Microsoft Makes Sweeping Changes to its Volume-Licensing Plans Reading between the lines: the key concept is "committed" - like they've been doing with EAP / ECI agreements, you only get the great volume pricing when / if you include Software Assurance for every device / installation in the enterprise. For many enterprises that's a deal-killer. Example: SQL Server. The current EAP agreement requires all SQL instances to be "included" - ...
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Microsoft has announced price increases effective November 1, 2013, for products including Windows Server Datacenter, RDS CALs and a new contract format, the "Server & Cloud Enrollment” (SCE). Click HERE to read the announcement. And so continues Microsoft’s historic pattern of increasing prices ahead of new version releases, and the usual autumn price bumps they post. This year it’s mostly about Windows Server and “RDS” which is the Citrix/Terminal Server/virtual desktop piece, along with related products. Also, on the cloud front, new Azure capabilities (maturity) with bundling/pricing tie-ins to EA’s, via this new SCE agreement ...
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As perhaps the most famous and successful pair of tag-team tech executives in history, Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer built the Microsoft empire by first co-opting the operating system of the new PC devices, then learning from the lessons of their new business partner IBM about how to build and enforce monopolistic "lock-in" over their customers and partners. As their market position and strength increased, they engineered long term growth and dominance by using aggressive pricing and licensing tactics, combined with a constant churning of the core product bundles (but always relying on Windows first, then Office, then servers). Microsoft's ...
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So we begin Microsoft's fiscal 4th quarter, ending June 30. The largest percentage of Microsoft Enterprise Agreements expires during this quarter, and historically it's been Microsoft's most profitable quarter. This year has been distinguished by the ongoing economic malaise which is tightening IT budgets everywhere, even and especially for "infrastructure" software such as Windows, Office and the various Microsoft servers. With Windows 8 being perceived as a flawed OS and Office 2013 as a marginal upgrade based on the flawed Windows 8, and with the sticker shock that many clients are still facing as they transition from older, ...
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This is a big quarter for Microsoft, with the release of Windows 8 and Office 2013, as well as the Surface / RT line of tablets and phones. It’s also a historic market opportunity for Microsoft’s enterprise customers. Most large businesses have been paying for Enterprise Agreements for a decade or more now, and are wondering whether the continued investment is worthwhile in a time of tightening cost controls and decreased relevance of traditional desktop computing in the enterprise. Will the market embrace Microsoft’s new products, or yawn and continue to run on the “good enough” existing versions of Win/Office, and continue the amazing ...
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Of course they do. Software companies design complexity into their licensing terms, and the result is that customers are unable to ever be sure they are completely in compliance with the license terms. This problem is endemic to the industry and is well known by every observer of the sector. As the soft economic cycle continues, the IT media is full of stories warning of software companies increasing audits. The connection is obvious - if revenues decline due to slow customer purchases, then the software companies can simply turn to their enforcement arms in order to make up the revenue shortfall. A rational observer can only conclude that ...
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Has Ballmer’s regime sneakily turned Microsoft from the starry-eyed tech dreamers that Gates left, into flinty-eyed bloodsuckers now? As the stock brokerage commercials say, past performance is no guarantee of the future... but what else do we have to go on? So let's review some Microsoft history: After establishing market dominance with DOS (a story that itself is full of questionable business tactics), Microsoft quickly realized the value of bundling products together in order to claim market share and crowd out competitors. Microsoft introduced Office in 1990, the same year that the US Federal Trade Commission began an investigation into ...
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Big Shocker: Microsoft is once again raising prices. Starting July 1, Microsoft’s raising substantially the prices it will be charging its UK business customers for software and services. Those clients with Enterprise Agreements (EAs) have seen a 25.7% price increase. Clients that contract with Microsoft under the Select or the Select Plus licensing model have seen a 24.6% price increase. Those clients that utilize Microsoft’s Office 365 cloud based offering have seen a 21% price increase. Those clients who have a Service Provider Licensing Agreement (SPLA), or an Open Value or an Independent Software Vendor (ISV) agreement, have seen the ...
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