Everything You Need to Know About Microsoft NCE (New Commerce Experience)

Everything you need to know about microsoft's New commerce Experience

Microsoft has been making some big changes to how licenses work. Here is the FAQ to help you understand the changes.

What is Microsoft’s New Commerce Experience (NCE)?

Microsoft’s new order, provision, and billing platform for seat-based licenses in CSP. Includes Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, Power Platform, and Windows 365.

Are all licenses/seats for all License Agreement Types available for transfer to NCE?

No, only Corporate. Government, Academic and Non-profit License Agreement Types are not currently available in NCE.

When are corporate subscriptions moving to NCE?

There are a few dates to keep in mind. Any new subscriptions will have to be made on NCE after March 9, 2022 . However, the ability to renew existing subscriptions on the legacy CSP platform will continue through June 30th 2022, ending on July 1st 2022. Legacy subscriptions will remain in effect until each of the subscription terms end. After June, you will have to renew subscriptions in the New Commerce Experience before each subscription expires to ensure the services continue.

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How will the new NCE subscriptions be priced?

Annual commitment will be aligned to current pricing in legacy, with monthly commitment being priced at a 20% premium. It’s worth noting that, separately from the introduction of NCE, Microsoft is increasing the prices of the following M365 SKUs from March 1st 2022: Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Microsoft 365 Business Premium, Office 365 E1, Office 365 E3, Office 365 E5, and Microsoft 365 E3. The increases are applicable for new customers and customer renewals.

What are the refund policies for cancellation?

You can receive a prorated refund of the initial subscription payment only within the first seven calendar days after the order is placed or renewed. After seven calendar days of the term, the subscription cannot be canceled and payment for the remainder of the term must be made.

Why do monthly term subscriptions cost more than annual-term ones in new commerce?

The new monthly term subscriptions in NCE are billed by Microsoft at a 20% higher price than annual-term offers of the same type because they give Sikich the ability to cancel on behalf of the customer within seven calendar days of the monthly term renewal date. The premium pricing is in line with standard practice in the Microsoft Web Direct program.

Can I change an Annual Term commitment offer to a Monthly commitment offer?

This is only possible within the first seven calendar days of placing an order for an Annual commitment offer. You can then place the order for the Monthly commitment offer. You cannot switch from an Annual commitment offer to a Monthly commitment offer outside of the initial seven calendar days.

To which NCE offers should I transition?

Transitioning to NCE is the time to assess your needs and develop a holistic transformation strategy, including an opportunity to increase seat counts, plan for upgrades, and upsell other solutions and value-added services.

For Example

If you have a stable or expanding workforce you may be attracted to annual term offers due to price predictability. Even with the enforcement of the new cancellation policy in the NCE, you will be able to cancel a subscription within the first seven calendar days of each annual term.

If you have variability in the workforce due to seasonality or business uncertainty will likely prefer monthly term offers that allow cancellation or seat reduction in any month.

Can monthly term subscriptions be changed to annual term easily in NCE? Some businesses need subscriptions or additional seats only during peak times of the year, for example.

Yes, your subscription can be changed from monthly term to annual term in NCE at the monthly term renewal.

Can I adjust the amount of seats on an annual commitment in NCE?

The number of seats in an annual subscription can be increased at any time. Costs for the additional seats added during the subscription will be prorated. However, Microsoft requires any reduction in seat count within seven calendar days of purchase, but once this time has elapsed the seat count is locked for the term with only additions allowed. If you make additions during the annual commitment, you won’t be able to reverse the changes until the end of the term. At the renewal of the term, the seven calendar days period for cancelations/seat reductions will come back into effect and you can make any changes.

Can I mix and match Annual commitment offers and Monthly commitment offers in NCE on the same customer?

Yes, you could have both a monthly committed offer and an annual committed offer for the same seat-based offer at the same time, with the appropriate number of seats in each committed term offer. For example, to accommodate its permanent and seasonal employees.

With NCE for seat-based subscriptions, when a customer purchases an annual-term subscription from Partner A, are they allowed to move that subscription to Partner B within that year’s term? Or are they locked in with Partner A until the term ends at the end of the year?

No, moving subscriptions across partners is not a supported feature. You can cancel subscriptions but must adhere to the cancellation policies regarding your committed term. In that case, it would be best for the customer to wait until the time of renewal of the Partner A subscription to purchase the same subscription from Partner B, and then to not renew the subscription with Partner A.

What about non-Microsoft solutions, such as ISVs (Independent Software Vendors) or 3rd party apps for Dynamics or Microsoft 365?

It is expected that most ISVs will follow Microsoft’s lead and switch from monthly to annual, 12-month-prepaid subscription model. Several ISVs have already done this, offering only annual subscription plans for new customers.

Will the NCE changes apply to all CSP partners worldwide?

Yes, all partner types in CSP (Indirect Provider, direct bill, indirect reseller) worldwide will be included in the NCE.

Will I need to sign or accept any new or different agreements?

You will continue to accept the Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) that governs your purchases from Sikich.

Can I upgrade an annual commitment offer in NCE ie M365 Business Basic to M365 Business Standard?

Yes, full upgrades (all seats) to an upgraded offer are allowed as well as partial upgrades.

Can I downgrade an annual commitment offer in NCE ie M365 Business Standard to M365 Business Basic?

No, following the seven calendar days period in which you can make changes, Microsoft states the chosen offer is locked for the term.

Are there any changes to Azure?

The changes detailed in this FAQ effects M365/D365 and other seat-based subscriptions. Azure was the first service to move to NCE and as such the transition has already begun from legacy Azure to the new Azure Plan.

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