As reported by Reuters today, Microsoft is making a global change by unbundling Teams from Office. This move follows a similar decision made six months ago for the EU region to prevent potential antitrust penalties.
Now, Teams will no longer come automatically included with Microsoft 365 and Office 365, a packaging that has been in place since 2017. A Microsoft representative stated:
In order to provide clarity to our customers, we are expanding the changes made last year to separate Teams from M365 and O365 in the European Economic Area and Switzerland to a global audience. This move also addresses feedback from the European Commission by offering multinational companies more flexibility in their purchasing decisions across different regions.
Starting today, Microsoft is offering Teams as an independent product for $5.25 per user per month. However, the pricing for Enterprise-level subscriptions can vary based on location, currency, and other variables. Office packages without Teams now range from $7.75 to $54.75, depending on the specific selection.
Existing customers have the option to maintain their current licensing arrangement, renew, update, or transition to the new offerings.
Competitors of Microsoft have argued that bundling products and services provides the company with an unfair advantage, so it remains to be seen how they will fare in a more separated market.
