In a recent move, Microsoft has made a significant concession by allowing customers with specific licenses to run Office applications on Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud infrastructure. This decision comes in the wake of Europe’s competition regulators launching an official probe into Microsoft’s business policies and practices.
The licensing tweak, which was first identified by analyst Directions on Microsoft (DoM), partially reverses a licensing change implemented in 2019. This change had required customers with perpetual licenses to purchase new licenses to run Microsoft applications on AWS, Google Cloud, or Alibaba infrastructure, resulting in significantly higher costs for customers using non-Azure cloud providers.
Following mounting complaints in Europe regarding Microsoft’s alleged anti-competitive behavior, the company introduced some changes to licenses in October. However, these changes did not address the cost disparity of using licenses on non-Microsoft cloud platforms. This led to dissatisfaction from AWS, one of the major cloud rivals.
In the latest update, Microsoft outlined new licensing terms that specifically benefit AWS cloud customers. Starting from August 1, 2023, users with specific licenses, including Microsoft 365 E3/E5/A3/A5 and Microsoft 365 Business Premium, will be able to run Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise/business, Microsoft Project, and Microsoft Visio on Amazon WorkSpaces.
AWS also confirmed that its AWS “End User Computing customers” would be able to utilize Microsoft 365 licenses through a ‘bring your own license’ (BYOL) model on Amazon WorkSpaces services. This includes applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneDrive, among others.
Wes Miller, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft, noted that while the concession provides a premium way to run Office on WorkSpaces, it remains a costly alternative to Azure. He emphasized the specific license requirements and additional costs associated with running Microsoft applications on AWS.
The move has drawn attention from regulatory authorities, with Francisco Mingorance, secretary general at CISPE, expressing that the concession is a positive step but does not go far enough. He highlighted the need for lifting software licensing restrictions for all cloud customers and urged regulatory action to address Microsoft’s licensing policies.
The development comes amidst ongoing regulatory scrutiny, with the European Commission formally probing the bundling of Microsoft’s Teams with its Office suite and complaints from various industry players regarding Microsoft’s software and cloud policies.
As the industry continues to evolve, the impact of Microsoft’s licensing adjustments on cloud customers and the broader competitive landscape remains a topic of interest for industry observers and regulatory bodies.
Further information on licensing changes can be found at Microsoft [here]
