Microsoft has advised users of its Office 365 suite in six Asia-Pacific nations they face big price rises when they renew subscriptions claiming that is to prop up its AI business.
Vole claims that the hikes of up to 29-46 per cent are needed to “ensure Microsoft customers are among the first to access powerful AI features in our apps."
AI is still a new thing and many users are not convinced that they need it, so Vole demanding money for it is set to be an own goal.
The price rises have been flagged in Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. As yet, Vole has not been brave enough to try the stunt in the EU, US or Britain.
A SpokesVole said that the price changes were not just about AI but reflect the extensive subscription benefits that Microsoft has added over the past 12 years including advanced security with Microsoft Defender, creative tools like Clipchamp, and countless enhancements to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Outlook, in addition to new features such as Microsoft Copilot and Microsoft Designer.
He added that the price hikes aren’t mandatory as subscribers can choose to sign up for a lesser version of Office 365 that does not include Copilot.
The spokesperson did say the purpose of the changes is to allow Microsoft a chance to “listen, learn, and improve.”
So, if there is a huge outcry in these places and companies and businesses walk away from Office 365 then Vole might change its mind.
While jacking up prices is never going to be popular, Vole is finding that the Australians do not find the move fair dinkum. The South Pacific is in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis so the idea of handing money over for a product which they do not own is going down as easily as a huhu grub.
To be fair, Microsoft recently promised to spend $80 billion on datacentres in 2025 alone, most of them to run AI applications and someone will have to pay for that. But it does seem that passing on huge price rises to consumers might be what it is trying to do. This could be a mistake as most of the stuff on Office 365 is offered for free on other office packages.
