Visual Studio and MSDN products are now available to order through the MPSA.
There’s a brand new portal to manage MSDN subscriptions purchased under the MPSA while existing subscriptions continue to be managed via VLSC.
Read the Microsoft blog post and see some screenshots of the new portal here: http://bit.ly/1O5UnaF.
Microsoft announce the September changes to the MPSA at the Worldwide Partner Conference: ECS arrives, and there are new multi-year Online Services subscriptions.
Commercial Select Plus agreements are being retired – this FAQ is a useful reminder of the key dates. It also covers what happens if the MPSA isn’t available in a country by the retirement date; in this case Select Plus will be available for another 90 days after the launch of the MPSA in that country.
Find the FAQ here: http://bit.ly/1JJHWj4.
The Microsoft February 2015 Volume Licensing newsletter is out and leads with the MPSA and its availability for Public Sector customers.
However, there’s also a useful recap of the important dates for the retirement of Select Plus:
Read the newsletter and/or subscribe to it here: http://bit.ly/1D183SU.
The MPSA Licensing Manual is updated for the availability of Government and Academic Purchasing Accounts from 1 March 2015. The changes confirm that a single MPSA can now have both Commercial and the new Government and Academic Purchasing Accounts (page 3), and that either of these new Public Sector Purchasing Accounts can have an end-date specified in case an organisation is not able to commit to evergreen terms and conditions (page 3).
There’s a new Agreement Structure section added on page 4 which shows how the terms and conditions of an MPSA are built dependent on the type of Purchasing Account, and there’s a reminder as to the eligibility requirements for Government and Academic Purchasing Accounts – these remain the same as for the other Volume Licensing agreements.
Finally, there’s a note on Price Levels on page 5 which confirms that, in common with Select Plus, there’s a single price level for a Government Purchasing Account which is equivalent to Commercial Level D pricing. There’s also a single price level for Academic Purchasing Accounts although the actual pricing is, as usual, different to a Government Purchasing Account.
Get this updated document here: http://bit.ly/18ERejZ.
An early Christmas present for you – an updated (December 2014) MPSA Licensing Manual.
There aren’t huge changes – the language for the Home Use Program and System Center Global Service Monitor has been changed to match that in the November 2014 Product List and you can see our corresponding blog post if you need to know the details (http://wp.me/p3K5IZ-bd).
Then there’s some clarification added on page 5 to make it really clear that a product must be ordered in the month that it is first used, and there’s streamlining of the text used for CustomerSource throughout.
Finally, on page 16, the Companion Subscription Licence is removed from the list of licences a customer may have to purchase MDOP. Get the updated document here: http://bit.ly/1zKwj7m.
An FAQ document is always a nice resource to have and this MPSA one has 16 pages of answers to those questions you may still have. The Operations section is particularly useful with its information on orders, promotions and concessions.
Get the document here: http://bit.ly/1ssAA9Q.
There’s a series of Sales and Licensing webcasts running out of the US over the next few weeks.
Join them for sessions on the MPSA, Microsoft Payment Solutions, and the Enterprise Mobility Suite: http://bit.ly/1xxpbto.
Customers buying through the MPSA need access to the Microsoft Volume Licensing Center (MVLC) and there’s an updated (September 2014) guide.
The previous guide was written at the time of the Windows Azure Active Directory Preview Portal and so all the processes and screenshots are (nicely) updated for the new Azure Management Portal. There’s also a useful new table on MVLC roles and permissions on pages 19/20 and one on AAD admin roles and permissions on page 31.
If your job involves accessing or teaching people how to use MVLC then the instructions in Appendices A and B are worth a read. Get it here: http://bit.ly/1vIzfze.