Microsoft confirm the July price increase - it's not as bad as predicted

Equanet reported here that Microsoft were to increase their Volume Licensing agreements in the UK by 29% on average as of 1st July.  Due to the fluctuation of the Euro the rise is not as high as expected.  Initially it was expected the increase would vary from between 7.5% and 33.5%.

The price ranges are less than expected and are between 1.7% and 25.9% based upon current exchange rates.  Naturally the diverse nature of the license agreements means that increase will vary.  Academic, boxed product and OEM remains static.

The table below identifies the price increases but bear in mind that these are average prices aligned to SKU, so you need to contact us for accuracy and ensuring that the right advice on reducing your financial exposure.

Volume License Program                                                Average Final Price Increase

Open License Commercial                                                             1.7%

Office 365 (MOSP)                                                                         Up to 15%

Open Value/Open Value Subscription                                             25.9%

SPLA                                                                                            25.9%

ISVR                                                                                             25.9%

Government Open Value/Subscription                                            25.9%

Government Open License Programme                                           25.9%

Select/Plus                                                                                  17.7%

Enterprise Agreement/Enterprise Agreement Subscription               18.7%

Depending on how you procure your licensing will depend on the affect this will have on your business.  It may be worthwhile for some organisations to bring forward their Microsoft projects or look to alternative volume licensing agreements to fix the pre-July increase for the next 3 years.

So, although not ideal it's not as bad as first thought.  We suggest that you call our software team to work out your options, your exposure and how this can be minimised.  After all your Microsoft technologies support your IT Strategy so assessing where you are in your strategy would be prudent to establish the best route for your licensing.