Welcome to Microsoft Licensing 6.0
WinInfo | at | by Mike
Beginning tomorrow, Microsoft will institute its reviled Licensing 6.0 scheme, the oft-delayed and oft-maligned new software purchasing program for corporations. It's the first major change in the way Microsoft sells software in half a decade, but the company's customers remain unimpressed with the plan, which has come under criticism for requiring that companies opt into lengthy software contracts. Microsoft, however, says that the move to Licensing 6.0 was necessitated by the complexity of its previous volume licensing practices, which awarded larger customers with steep discounts. According to some reports, Licensing 6.0 effectively raises prices 33 to 107 percent over the previous scheme. This sad state of affairs has predictably alienated many of the software giants customers, some of whom are now actively researching Linux and other open source alternatives.