Microsoft Loosens Licensing Restrictions On Solution Accelerators

Microsoft attributed the decision to customer feedback. "People love the accelerators, and they want more. But they also wanted to eliminate the Software Assurance requirement, so we are doing that effective immediately," said Anders Brown, group product manager for Microsoft's Information Worker New Products Team.

Solution Accelerators are downloadable add-ons that include sample code, templates and other functionality to bolster the use of Office applications in specific scenarios.

Since last fall, the Redmond, Wash.-based company has delivered accelerators for recruiting and proposals. Four additional accelerators for Six Sigma, Sarbanes-Oxley, Business Scorecards, and OLAP Reporting are due in the next few months. Brown said the company will "at least double" the number of accelerators it will furnish next year.

Until now, companies could download and pilot the add-ons but could not deploy without the appropriate license.

"This will let organizations really quickly engage with the accelerators without having to be in Software Assurance," said Kevin Hein, vice president of business development at Captaris, a Bellevue, Wash.-based Microsoft partner.

Others said by dropping the licensing requirement, Microsoft is trying to be more flexible. The company has been slammed by some customers and analysts over its recent licensing changes, which were viewed as restrictive and expensive.