Microsoft to Rebrand Some Office to Microsoft 365 Business Plans
They say, “what’s in a name”? Well, a lot actually! If you are a parent, you will know how agonizing it can be to give your new baby the right name. You can’t give them something they’ll be made fun of… or will offend anyone… or has initials that spell something embarrassing… or reminds you of a mean kid you used to know at school. Then you also have to be clairvoyant and predict how your child may look in 30 years and consider if that name will still suit them. You have no idea if they are going to become a computer programmer or a lawyer or a performer with Cirque du Soleil! How can you pick a name to suit every eventuality?!
The same is true of business and software names. Programmers and marketing departments can spend hours… no, days…no, months(!) thinking of the perfect name for their hard work. And then, time moves on and their program changes… it evolves… and the original name just doesn’t work as well anymore.
Well, for that (kind-of) reason, Microsoft have decided to do a few name changes for their 365 offerings.
Office 365 has evolved and gone a long way beyond the original suite of traditional office programs. The name no longer did justice to the range of apps and services that now fall under the subscriptions’ vast umbrella. Plus, Microsoft recently introduced a brand new set of offerings aimed at the consumer market, in their Microsoft 365 Personal and Family Subscriptions.
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Here are the changes:
- Office 365 Business Essentials will become Microsoft 365 Business Basic.
- Office 365 Business Premium will become Microsoft 365 Business Standard.
- Microsoft 365 Business will become Microsoft 365 Business Premium.
- Office 365 Business and Office 365 ProPlus will both become Microsoft 365 Apps. Where necessary we will use the “for business” and “for enterprise” labels to distinguish between the two.
- Microsoft 365 F1 will become Microsoft 365 F3.
- Office 365 F1 will become Office 365 F3.
Some plans not changing, though.
Those are:
- Office 365 for Enterprise
- Office 365 E1
- Office 365 E3
- Office 365 E5
- Office 365 for Firstline Workers
- Office 365 F1
- Office 365 for Education
- Office 365 A1
- Office 365 A3
- Office 365 A5
- Office 365 for Government
- Office 365 G1
- Office 365 G3
- Office 365 G5
So… as a 365 business user, what does that mean for you?
Not a lot really! There are no pricing or feature changes. The changes will happen automatically, so you will just see what you are using referred to by a different name: Microsoft 365 Business Plan.
When is this happening?
The new Microsoft 365 Business Plans names will take effect on April 21, 2020.
