Microsoft unbundles Teams: New prices in EU and Switzerland

Starting next month, Microsoft Teams will no longer be included in Microsoft 365 and Office 365 suites for business customers. This affects customers in the European Economic Area and Switzerland and comes with a reduction in monthly fees for the suites.

Microsoft announces changes to Microsoft 365 and Office 365 to address European competition concerns: In response to European Commission concerns about bundling Microsoft Teams with Microsoft 365 and Office 365 for business customers, Microsoft is making proactive changes.

Teams unbundling in Switzerland and EU

Microsoft plans to unbundle Teams from Suites in the European Economic Area and Switzerland starting Oct. 1, 2023. It will also roll out an improved interoperability system to facilitate integration with third-party vendors such as Zoom and Salesforce.

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Main changes and price adjustments

Microsoft 365 and Office 365 will be offered without Teams starting in October 2023, reducing the price. Teams will be available separately. Prices here will be roughly in line with those in the EU, which are around €6 per month and €72 per year. Exact pricing for Switzerland is yet to be announced. Existing enterprise customers will have the choice of staying with their current productivity suite or switching to a suite without Teams.

These changes are a response to two main concerns of the European Commission: customers should be able to choose a business suite without Teams at a lower price. Microsoft should facilitate interoperability between competing communications and collaboration solutions and the 365 suites.

Background and context

Integrating communications and collaboration capabilities into business suites is not new to Microsoft. This began back in 2007 with Office Communicator and has been further developed over the years with products such as Lync and Skype for Business Online, most recently with Microsoft Teams. Microsoft recognizes its role as a technology provider and the importance of a healthy competitive environment. The current changes reflect Microsoft's commitment to taking the European market and the Commission's concerns seriously.

Better support and integration for developers

In addition to the pricing changes and unbundling, Microsoft will also provide new support resources. These are aimed at helping developers improve interoperability with 365 apps. The company will also develop mechanisms to enable hosting of Office Web apps by third-party solutions.

Conclusion

In closing, Microsoft emphasizes that these proactive steps will not necessarily address all of the Commission's concerns. However, the company remains committed to dialogue with the Commission and remains open to feedback and finding solutions that benefit both European customers and developers.

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