ITinfo: Microsoft Scraps Office XP Subscription Plan

Microsoft Cancels Subscriptions

Software to be sold as licenses with 1-time fee

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Microsoft Scraps Office XP Subscription Plan

by Dave Murphy
ISSN 1535-3613

Microsoft has temporarily nixed a controversial plan to sell Office XP on a subscription basis.

The widely-expected upgrade to Microsoft's flagship office suite is less than a month away from it's official launch. Dell Computer Corp has already started offering the suite of common office applications on new PCs.

Microsoft's spokesperson explains the last-minute change of plans: "The Office XP subscription offering will not be offered in the U.S. this year," she wrote. "It will be available in a few select locations when Office XP becomes available in those locations. Those countries plan to make their subscription offering announcements at a later date."

I think Microsoft may be modifying their business plan in reaction to current software market, which is seen by some analysts as soft and less willing to purchase large volumes of software upgrades.

Currently about 60 percent of Microsoft Office users work on either version 95 or 97, not the more recent Office 2000, the immediate precursor to Office XP. This statistic, cited by CNET news, is confirmed by our work with trainers around the globe. It's only in the last few months have I've seen a change in the requests from U.S.-based trainers. I've been using Office 2000 for years, but most companies and trainers are still working with Office 95/97, and yes, versions of WordPerfect.

What versions are you using at work? What versions are you training? Drop a note on the message center.

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References

Microsoft Message Center Related Articles Microsoft Office 10 Subscription Service

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updated May 6, 2001
http://dgl.com/itinfo/2001/it010506.html