Microsoft are increasing Cloud pricing in the UK by 9% as of April 1st 2023 to better align their pricing globally.

These changes apply to all subscriptions including products like Office 365, and Azure Reserved Instances.

If you are currently on a month-to-month subscription or have an annual commitment due for renewal before April 1st 2023, you can avoid the price increase for up to 1 year by entering into a new 12-month term, to gain a year of price protection.

Microsoft said: “We have deferred pricing adjustments based on currency fluctuations thus far. However, after a sustained period of lower local currency Microsoft cloud pricing in many regions of the world, we’re now beginning a process to realign our prices globally.”

These changes are to realign international prices closer the USD pricing, as customers and partners have been able to purchase Microsoft products at up to 40% cheaper than the US.

Microsoft have now implemented a more transparent and defined cadence to provide better Commercial Cloud pricing alignment across regions, with plans to assess pricing in local currencies twice a year which takes into consideration currency fluctuations relative to the USD. This means that prices could reduce or increase, depending on the currency exchange rate. Partners and customers with pricing in local currencies will be able to plan for pricing in alignment to the USD and global parity at semi-annual intervals.

We appreciate the impact this has on our customers, as it does razorblue. However, Microsoft have stated that organisations with Microsoft cloud services will continue to find this offering highly competitive and they continue to invest heavily in product and service development.

You can find the Microsoft announcement here.

For more information on Microsoft’s price increase and what it means for you, get in touch with a member of our team.