Office 365 subscription vs. traditional desktop install

[John-Paul Damico]

Every client is different but I see more and more making the move to the new subscription model Microsoft has come out with.  What are your thoughts on this?  When do you think it makes sense for a user to go this route rather than the traditional machine license or vice versa?  

[Dave Langschwager]

http://www.thadthoughts.com/2013/07/pros-and-cons-of-licensed-enterprise-application/

I think this link pretty much sums it up.

Here is a link to MSDN Subscriptions available.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/subscriptions/

[John-Paul Damico]

It looks like this a article explaining volume licensing.  What I'd like to talk about is the subscription licensing model.

[Dan Bell]

My thoughts are that if a home user needs to have the full version of Office and they have multiple computers this makes sense.  It is easy to install and maintain licenses. If a system needs to be rebuilt and the software needs to be reinstalled it is easy just to download it to the computer with no need for install media.  It also allows for people that us tablets.  I would suggest to a user to get the subscription if they were planning on using Office on 2 or more computers and if they wanted to use it on a tablet.  Another option for light users of Office is to just use the free online version.  In many cases this is all they need.   https://login.live.com/login.srf

[Ninotchka White]

Here are my thoughts on this topic.

Some reasons users should consider an Office 365 subscription rather than a desktop client installation are to:

 

(Home users)

 

1. Reduce vulnerabilities and risk surface on PC or device.

2. Eliminate the need for re-installation upon re-imaging.

3. Reduce the number of weekly updates and patches.

4. Access MS Office suite from multiple devices.

5. Eliminates need for constant version upgrades. - Big plus

6. Better orient themselves to the software differences if Office 365 is used in user's work environment. This enables users to gain skill confidence to possibly explore more effective and efficient methods of using the application through advanced skills.

 

 

(Business users)

 

1. Above items 1 - 5 increasing network security, user accessibility and productivity, reduce work for IT staff, and create a leaner IT budget. Cloud solution vulnerabilities become the responsibility of the subscription provider rather than the company. Subscription providers often times have better resources to address these issues. This also relieves their clients from needing to increase their software, and expertise expenses to address the issue themselves.

2. It is my guess this would also ease licensing issues.

3. Creates a uniform application environment. 

4. Companies and government agencies are constantly looking for ways to securely trim IT fat and centralize resources. IT resources as a service are increasingly utilized in response. Cloud solutions through subscription is one of those services. For companies addressing these issues wishing to continue using Microsoft's products, Office 365 is the better selection.

[Dan Bell]

Your number 2 on business users is spot on.  The company I work for uses O365 and it is so much easier for licensing.  When a user leaves the company I disable them from O365 and their license is done.  With O365 they are allowed to have 5 licenses so they can put it on their home computers as well and that license expires and they can't use Office when I disable them from O365.  With O365 we don't have to maintain an exchange server either.

[ama...@afterhourscr.com]

For myself and my clients, I'm a Google Apps for Business man. I find that MS Office, in all of its flavors, is an unnecessary evil. 

[rkoe...@afterhourscr.com]

Definitely!  My Outlook 2007 was getting out of date, and I kept running into trouble having to maintain it.  Also when I purchased a Windows8 tablet/PC I wanted the latest and greatest of Office for it.  The model at Microsoft 365 (/Per Year) now is so awesome, it even allows installs on my Android Tablets and phones.  Of course there were already 3rd party versions of Office for Android... Microsoft's version is still superior.  I do realize that for some, the Microsoft concept is still evil, and people will avoid them like the plague.  I think the plague concept will diminish as time goes on.  There will always be alternatives, but there will always be the necessity to support DOCX and XLSX formats.

Thanx,

Robert

[jga...@afterhourscr.com]

I love Google Apps as well, but it's confusing for business clients who want all of the functionality in Office.  It just doesn't communicate the same way. That is to say if a company is willing to use the web portal for all Google Apps then they are golden.  For home users it works well.

[Ryan Telfer]

I actually used the subscription model myself up until a couple of months ago, another convenient point for home users, and actually my reason for going that route, if you are short on cash that month its as simple as cancel/renew when you can afford it. Not to mention if you think about it, its actually cheaper. For the subscription model you get the full Office Suite for $119.88 if you pay monthly, or $99.99 if you pay the full year up front (+ tax depending on location) and can install it on up to 5 machines.  To get that same Suite as a one time purchase would cost $399.99. Plus, as was previously mentioned, as long as you are a subscriber you get updated to the latest version for 'free' whenever they release one as opposed to having to repurchase at full price.