As part of software plus services platform strategy, a new business model opens doors to revenue streams for partners. HOUSTON, July 8
HOUSTON, July 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Microsoft Corp. today kicked off
the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference 2008 with the announcement of a new
pricing and partner model for Microsoft Online Services, a key component of
its software plus services initiative. Additional announcements focused on its
overall investment in delivering innovation and creating partner
opportunities.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO)
"Partners have always been at the core of Microsoft's business model, and
that will never change," said Allison L. Watson, corporate vice president of
the Worldwide Partner Group at Microsoft. "Today we are excited to announce
new business models for our Online offerings, which will drive opportunity and
profitability for our partners, while delivering incredible value and choice
for customers."
Software Plus Services Strategy Includes New Business Models for Partners
During the opening keynote address, Stephen Elop, president of the
Microsoft Business Division, announced the pricing and partner model for two
new suites of subscription services as part of the Microsoft Online Services
family, which delivers software as a subscription service managed from a
Microsoft datacenter and sold by partners. With Microsoft Online Services,
customers have the option to access messaging, collaboration and
communications software over the Internet. These services will be sold as a
suite or as stand-alone products with prices starting as low as $3 (U.S.) per
month.
"Our vision is that everything you can do with our onsite servers, you
will be able to do with our online services," Elop said. "For partners, it's
about the differentiated value they can deliver on top of our services, as
well as providing them with an ongoing revenue stream. There is incredible
partner opportunity at every level -- integration, migration, customization,
consulting services and managed services. Microsoft Online Services provides
stability and an opportunity to create long-term customer relationships."
Under the new business model, partners selling the two suites will receive
12 percent of the first-year contract value with a recurring revenue stream of
6 percent of the subscription fee every year for the life of the customer
contract. Additional information can be found at
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2008/jul08/07-08BOSGWPCAPR.mspx.
To help partners get the guidance for discovery, enrollment and activation
of the two suites, a new program was announced called Quickstart for Microsoft
Online Services. Any partner can take advantage of the new business model, and
hosting partners that already participate in models like this will have
expanded opportunities to offer choice and flexibility to their customers for
online services of all types. To join Quickstart, partners can visit
http://www.quickstartonlineservices.com.
New Partner Resources for Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online
Building on the success of its Early Access program involving 200
partners, and the general availability in April 2008 of Microsoft Dynamics CRM
Online, Microsoft is announcing a program expansion and readiness tool:
-- The Microsoft Partner Program will provide discounts to qualified
partners in the U.S. and Canada for use of Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online in
their own organizations. The discounted price is $19 (U.S.) per user per month
and will be available in fall 2008.
-- The new Microsoft Dynamics CRM ISV SaaS Readiness tool extends
Microsoft's INNOVATE ON program, helping ISVs evolve their on-premise
solutions into on-demand services.
Major Partner Opportunity Announcements Abound at WPC
In addition to significant new software plus services announcements to
support customer and partner choice and flexibility, Microsoft is announcing
an entire spectrum of new partner opportunities: across the fast-growing
unified communications platform, the range of opportunities for Microsoft
Windows and small businesses, a new Mobile Readiness program to help partners
take advantage of the burgeoning mobility space, and new licensing and
financing programs to help partners improve their customers' purchasing
experience with more flexible, predictable and manageable options. More
information on expanded partner opportunities from Microsoft Solution for
Hosted Messaging and Collaboration to Microsoft Office Live Small Business is
in the accompanying fact sheet at
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/events/wwpc/docs/PartnerOpportunityFS.doc.
Partners and Customers Embrace Unified Communications
Over the past year, Microsoft has witnessed widespread adoption of its
unified communications platform and products, including Microsoft Office
Communications Server 2007, Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 and Microsoft
Exchange Server 2007. Microsoft Office Communications Server alone has
experienced triple-digit business growth over the last two quarters year over
year, is licensed to thirty-five percent of Fortune 500 companies, and
partners are recognizing the opportunity:
-- More than 150 partners have achieved the Voice specialization.
-- More than 2,500 partner companies have achieved the Unified
Communications Solutions competency.
-- More than 90 companies have joined the Notes Transition Partner Program
to assist businesses that are migrating to the Microsoft platform.
As part of Microsoft's unified communications approach, Microsoft
subsidiary Tellme Networks Inc. is launching a new partner strategy for
enterprise contact center partners that will allow Tellme to scale its
business and bring improved speech-enabled solutions to enterprise customers.
As a first step, Tellme and SpeechCycle Inc. announced an alliance where
SpeechCycle will use Tellme's platform for on-demand speech applications.
Additional information can be found at http://www.tellme.com/business.
Software Innovation Continues to Deliver Partner Opportunity for Windows
Vista
Since the launch of Windows Vista, the Windows partner ecosystem has
changed dramatically. Today, more than 77,000 devices and components -- more
than twice as many as at launch -- are currently supported, which provides
Windows Vista users with a rich variety of hardware and software options to
help personalize their experience. As the compatibility experience continues
to improve, partners are better able to help customers experience the best of
Windows Vista.
Microsoft today introduced the Windows Vista Compatibility Center (WVCC)
beta. Through this new compatibility tool, Microsoft will work to solicit
continuous feedback from consumers and partners to ensure that their purchase
and adoption experience remains positive long after their migration to Windows
Vista. The WVCC has been designed to help this audience easily identify the
products and devices that are compatible with Windows Vista. The WVCC can be
found at http://www.windows.com/compatibility.
Microsoft also announced Windows Vista Small Business Assurance, a
resource for partners to assist small-business customers interested in
migrating from Windows XP to Windows Vista. The program provides free
technical support so small businesses can get the most out of their Windows
Vista experience while resolving any technical or compatibility issues.
Customers purchasing new PCs with Windows Vista Business or Windows Vista
Ultimate between July 1 and Sept. 30, 2008, are eligible for the program, and
support will be available until Oct. 31, 2008. Both offerings are currently
available in the U.S. only. Further details are available at
http://www.windows.com/assurance.
To continue driving partner opportunity, Microsoft today announced the
BizTalk Adapter Pack 2.0, which enables partners to create value-added
solutions for line-of-business system interoperability (such as with SAP R/3,
Siebel eBusiness Suite and Oracle E-Business Suite) with any .NET Framework-
based application. In addition, partners can rapidly develop and market full-
fledged interoperable adapters to complement the Microsoft offering using the
Windows Communication Foundation Line of Business Adapter SDK, allowing
customers to connect mission-critical data across applications.
Increasing Mobility Opportunities for Partners
Microsoft's SMB customers have reported that among network devices,
smartphones will constitute their largest growth area in the next five years.
To help reseller partners prepare for this, Microsoft's Mobile Communications
Business unveiled today the Mobile Readiness Program, which will address
resellers with four components:
-- The Get Mobile Ready initiative offers Microsoft consulting to small
and midsize resellers.
-- The Try and Buy initiative deploys Microsoft mobility solutions within
resellers to create SMB mobility experts around the globe and help partners
showcase the technology in action.
-- The Microsoft Partner Program Mobility Competency is a full-scale
resource to train and certify resellers that are ready to take the next step
in mobility.
-- Finally, Microsoft distributors worldwide are offering solutions to
help resellers provide their SMB customers with a ready-made package of
mobility offerings at a competitive price.
Improving the Purchasing Experience
As part of ongoing effort to improve the overall purchasing experience for
both customers and partners, Microsoft announced a new Volume Licensing
program last week called Select Plus for large organizations with multiple
business affiliates. At the conference, Microsoft is announcing additional
updates to the Open Value program for small and midsize customers and
Microsoft Financing solutions for customers of all sizes to help them balance
growing technology needs with more flexible, manageable and predictable
purchasing. Select Plus, together with the other program updates, will allow
partners to build deeper customer relationships with options to meet
customers' unique needs. More information is available at
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/features/2008/jul08/07-07QAmatz.mspx.
More information about the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference is
available on the virtual event site at
http://partner.microsoft.com/digitalwpc. Visitors can watch select keynote
addresses live or on demand, register to view sessions, and learn more about
the news and events coming out of the conference.
About the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference
The Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference provides Microsoft's partner
community with access to key marketing and business strategies, leadership and
information regarding specific customer solutions designed to help partners
succeed in the marketplace. Along with informative learning opportunities
covering sales, marketing, services and technology, the Worldwide Partner
Conference is an ideal setting for partners to garner valuable knowledge from
their peers and from Microsoft. More information can be found at
https://partner.microsoft.com/US/trainingevents/wwpartnerconference and on the
Partner Program home page at https://partner.microsoft.com.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is the worldwide leader in
software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their
full potential.
SOURCE Microsoft Corp.
