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Microsoft licensing agreements comparison for commercial and government.
Microsoft offers commitment-based and transactional options for organizations that want to purchase Microsoft cloud services, on-premises software, and/or Software Assurance through Microsoft-assisted, partner value-added, or self-service web options.
Microsoft Enterprise Agreements
Microsoft Enterprise Agreements are commitment-based Microsoft Volume Licensing agreements for commercial organizations signing a new enrollment with 500 or more users/devices and government organizations with 250 or more users/devices that want to license Microsoft cloud services and/or on-premises software organization-wide, over a three-year period, and at the best available pricing. Software Assurance is included.
Microsoft Product- and Services-Agreement
The Microsoft Products and Services Agreement (MPSA) is a transactional Microsoft Volume Licensing agreement for commercial and government organizations with 250 or more users/devices that want to license Microsoft cloud services and/or on-premises software as needed—with no organization-wide commitment under a single, non-expiring agreement. Software Assurance is optional.
Microsoft Open-
Agreements
Microsoft Open License, Microsoft Open Value, and Microsoft Open Value Subscription are Microsoft Volume Licensing agreements for organizations with 5 to 499 users/devices that want to license Microsoft cloud services and/or on-premises software. Software Assurance is included.
Microsoft Cloud Agreement (MCA)
The Microsoft Cloud Agreement is a transactional licensing agreement for commercial, government, and academic organizations with one or more users/devices seeking to fully outsource management of their cloud services through a Cloud Solution Provider (CSP). On-premises software and Software Assurance are not available through the Microsoft Cloud Agreement.
Microsoft commercial and government licensing agreements comparison.
Microsoft Enterprise Agreements | Microsoft Products und Services Agreement (MPSA) | Microsoft Open-Agreement | Microsoft Cloud Agreement (via CSP) | |
Offerings | Commitment-based cloud services and on-premises software | Transactional cloud services and on-premises software | Transactional (Open License and Open Value non-organization-wide) or commitment-based (Open Value agreements) cloud services and on-premises software | Transactional cloud services only |
Agreement term | Three years | Non-expiring | Two years (Open License), three years (Open Value agreements), or one year (Open Value government agreements only) | One year (auto-renew) |
Purchase coverage | Organization-wide | As needed | As needed (Open License and Open Value non-organization-wide) or organization-wide (Open Value agreements) | As needed |
Purchase term | Three years for initial purchase, co-terminus for additional purchases | One year or shorter for select cloud services | Two years (Open License), three years (Open Value agreements), or one year (cloud services and Open Value government agreements) | One year |
Purchase term expiration | Enrollment expiration | Third account anniversary for Software Assurance; next account anniversary or multiyear for cloud services | Authorization expiration (Open License), agreement expiration (Open Value agreements), or subscription term expiration (one year for cloud services) | Abonnementende (ein Jahr oder monatlich) |
Minimum commitment | 250 (for government) or 500 (for commercial) qualified devices/users per pool | 500 points per product pool or 250 cloud services users by pool (per year) | Five licenses or Licenses and Software Assurance (L&SA), one user subscription license (USL), or use of Azure pay-as-you-go | One USL or use of Azure pay-as-you-go |
Target organization size | 500 or more users (250 or more users for government) | 250 or more users | 5 to 499 users for on-premises software; one or more users for cloud services (up to 300 USLs for Office 365 Business editions) | One or more users |
Sales model | Microsoft direct or partner indirect (based on geo and sector) | Partner indirect | Partner indirect | Partner indirect |
Ordering | In the month of first use for the initial product order; annually for subsequent orders (per enrollment) | As needed (per purchasing account) | As needed (Open License and Open Value non-organization-wide per agreement) or in the month of first use for the initial product order and annually for subsequent orders (Open Value agreements per agreement) | As needed (per CSP) |
On-premises software license | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
|
Non-perpetual license for on-premises software | ✔ (Enterprise Subscription Agreement) | ✔ (Open Value Subscription) | ||
Cloud services user subscription license (USL) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Provisioning of cloud services prior to order | ✔ | ✔ |
|
|
Software Assurance | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
|
Price list | Commercial und Government | Commercial, Government und Academic | Commercial und Government plus Academic sowie gemeinnützige Organisationen für Open License | Commercial und Government |
Price level determination | Based on user and device license quantity by pool or qualifying contract for commercial; single price level for government | Based on points by pool or qualifying contract for commercial; single price level for public sector | Based on product pools (commercial Open License) or device quantity (commercial Open Value agreements); single price level for public sector | No price level (price set by CSP) |
Price protection | All products and services included in the agreement | One-year subscription for cloud services | Select products (Open Value agreements, organization-wide) | Cloud services subscription length in one-year increments |
Upfront payments | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Annual (spread) payments | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
|
Microsoft Financing (where available) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
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