Microsoft's offers staggered payment option for software purchase through Open Value licensing
Simplifies license management for SMBs, helps them stay current with software
Delhi, March 11th, 2008: Paying for your business IT needs just got easier as Microsoft today announced the staggered payment option for software purchases in India through its Open Value Licensing program. Designed especially for Small and Medium sized Businesses (SMBs), this licensing program would allow businesses to implement IT solutions for benefiting their businesses while diverting their funds instead to other critical capital expenditure. This program would also simplify software license management and allow automatic access to upgrades of latest products.
 
For the first time in India, SMBs will be able to spread their payments for software solutions over a three-year period rather than make an upfront payment. A recent Microsoft- AMI Partners report on IT adoption in the Indian SMBs, found that 48 percent customers stated 'pricing pressures' in the market a critical challenge Open Value not only offers an easy payment option to help the SMB community overcome this

  Benefits of Open Value Licensing at a glance

Reduce upfront cost
 
–Open Value Licensing gives you the freedom to pay in easy installment over a three year term. This helps plan IT budgets more effectively
Upgrade anytime
 
–With Open Value License customers get the benefits of Software Assurance which helps stay current with the latest version of Microsoft software. It also offers the benefits of training, product support and deployment
Simplify License tracking
 
–Open Value License helps customers comply better with corporate governance guidelines. It provides customers with a single agreement for all Microsoft software within the country as well as qualified affiliates outside
challenge but also protects the customer from product price fluctuations during the license period.
 

During the three year period, Open Value Licensing also provides Software Assurance, a feature that allows access to valuable benefits such as training, IT planning, software upgrades and product support.  Reiterating Microsoft's commitment to the SMB community, Rajeev Mittal, Group Director, Small and Medium Enterprise, Microsoft India, stated, "The Open Value Licensing program is a unique model that has been crafted keeping in mind feedback received from SMB customers on the challenges they face during IT adoption.  We believe that this simplified licensing management will not only give SMBs greater control over their software costs and investments, but also make it more affordable so as to allow them easy access to software."

Open Value is designed for organizations with five or more PCs and allows companies to enter into a single licensing agreement for as many desktops, or servers as they consider necessary.  Customers can pay in three annual instalments, and also choose to increase the number of licenses purchased at any given point in time, thus allowing them to accommodate business fluctuations without the burden of over-investing in IT.
 
"Microsoft's Open Value Licensing is a boon for businesses like ours with fragmented investments in IT which have accumulated across the years.", said Rohit Jain, Director, RSMS Architect Pvt. Ltd, Delhi, an early adopter of the Open Value model. 'It allows us to streamline our licenses by getting them all under one umbrella and manage our costs effectively. It also offers us the advantage of product upgrades. Open Value helps us keep up to date with the latest technology,"; he added.
 
A wide range of products from Microsoft, ranging from Microsoft Office, MS Windows, Sequel and Exchange Servers to Developer Tools, form the comprehensive offering available under Open Value. The offerings cover the major business requirements of SMBs.
 
Affordability and simplicity has always been at the core of Microsoft's offerings for the SMB community and the OVL program is a step towards making the entire product offering more accessible and easier to manage. "Open Value consolidates the inherent advantages that Microsoft solutions offer to the customer i.e., ease of use, affordability and productivity along with allowing flexible payment options, and the added value that Software Assurance delivers." said Rajnikant Das of E-Soft Solutions Inc. a Microsoft Gold Certified partner. 'Given this comprehensive package Open Value is sure to be a success with the SMB community.'
 
Microsoft offers a variety of licensing options spanning across the Enterprise agreement for large enterprises, the Open Business and now Open Value Licensing. They are each designed to meet the special requirements of different business groups. The Open Value was conceived as support to the SMB community and it takes Microsoft's commitment to them a step further.
 

 About Microsoft India

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. Microsoft Corporation India Private Ltd is a subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation USA. It has had a presence in India since 1990 and currently has offices in twelve cities - Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Hyderabad, Indore, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi, and Pune.

 

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