The Microsoft mission is clear: empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our partners enable us to deliver this mission in every customer segment, industry, and region.
At Microsoft Ignite 2024, we put a spotlight on the $661 billion total addressable market (TAM) opportunity for small and medium enterprise customer segments in FY25 and beyond.* Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) partners are the trusted advisors who serve these customers and enable them to accelerate their AI transformation with the value-added services and solutions that create real business impact. CSP is our hero motion that enables those partners to drive this transformation.
Today, I’m pleased to announce additional updates designed to help CSP partners drive more renewals and upgrades, retain customers, upsell, and scale their businesses. At the same time, we will deepen our investment in the partners who are delivering transformational impact with customers, aligned to our strategic imperatives.
Today’s announcements are a continuation of our investments in CSP offers, capabilities, and enablement for FY25, through which we:
- Aligned incentives to our five strategic priorities: Copilot on every device across every role; AI design wins with every customer; securing the cyber foundation of every customer; migrations, migrations, migrations; and Microsoft 365 core execution.
- Dedicated 70% of our total partner incentives to partners that serve the small and medium enterprise customer segments.
- Launched new capabilities that help partners access, review, and respond to jointly planned leads shared by small and medium enterprise customer sellers and track progress and performance between Partner Center and MSX.
- Introduced a series of new promotions, including our new-to-Microsoft 365 E5 offer to help CSP partners win new customers.
Introducing three-year subscription terms in CSP
To expand deal-making capabilities and offer a more consistent experience across purchasing channels, including those transitioning from expiring Enterprise Agreements (EAs), we're launching three-year subscription terms for Microsoft 365 E3 and E5, with or without Teams, as well as Teams Enterprise licenses in CSP on June 1, 2025. They will be available for purchase with three-year upfront or triennial/annual billing options only.
The new three-year SKUs for E3 and E5 without Teams and Teams Enterprise standalone SKUs will be generally available on the CSP price list on June 1, 2025. These SKUs will appear on the May 1, 2025, CSP price list preview in the Partner Center pricing workspace.** The new three-year SKUs for E3 and E5 with Teams will only be available on the end of sale (EOS) price list in Partner Center on June 1, 2025. There is no price list preview for the EOS price list.
At either midterm or renewal, you’ll be able to change E3 and E5 subscription terms for customers who have EOS SKUs of Microsoft 365 and Office 365 Enterprise suites with Teams to these new three-year EOS terms.
In addition, effective July 1, 2025, a three-year subscription for Microsoft 365 E5 Security and E5 Compliance mini suites will also be available.
And to help you transition customers from on-premises solutions or upgrade them from Office 365, we’re launching new 10% discount promotions for new-to-E3 or new-to-E5 customers on the CSP three-year subscription terms. The E3 and E5 promotion will be available on June 9, 2025, while the E5 mini suite promotion will be available on July 1, 2025.
We’re also extending the Microsoft 365 Copilot Getting Started discount promotion through June 30, 2025.
Simplifying renewals and upgrades
Based on partner feedback, we made two important process improvements on April 1, 2025, making it easier to transition customers from EA to CSP and reducing the processing time for midterm upgrades.
- We launched a channel transfers interface in Partner Center that helps partners renew expiring EA offers for Microsoft 365 E3 and E5 with Teams and Office 365 E1, E3, and E5 with Teams—which are EOS—into CSP and maintain the customers’ Teams entitlements.
- We also introduced AI-powered automation that streamlines midterm upgrades by handling subscription cancellations and credits automatically. The result: fewer duplicate SKUs and a reduction of support resolution times down to one day or less.
Introducing Net Paid Seat Adds reporting in Partner Center
One of the frequent requests we get from partners is to help you understand the state of your Microsoft 365 install base and act when needed. We’re making Net Paid Seat Adds (NPSA) reporting available in Partner Center in June 2025. This reporting will provide visibility into the same performance metrics that Microsoft employees can access internally, creating more clarity during business reviews and stronger joint execution.
Deepening our investment in building a capable, sustainable CSP ecosystem
We strive to provide partners with offers, capabilities, and enablement to make the TAM opportunity a reality. We want to ensure our CSP partner ecosystem is well-positioned to create the seamless solutions and experiences our customers have come to expect while accelerating growth opportunities. Starting October 1, 2025, we're introducing new authorization requirements that will apply to direct bill partners, distributors (formerly indirect providers), and indirect resellers.
Eligibility thresholds
We’ll also roll out updated eligibility requirements for CSP incentives in FY26. These updates will align with the CSP authorization changes, requiring CSP direct bill partners, distributors, and indirect resellers to have streamlined and relevant expertise by solution area.
Let’s achieve more—together
I am continually inspired by our partners and the impact you’ve made for customers of all sizes as you empower them to succeed with Microsoft solutions. We continue to make investments such as these to make it easier for you to deliver innovation, drive impact, and build lasting customer relationships.
Join us on May 6, 2025, for our Accelerate CSP Growth with Corporate customers and new Copilot value webinar to learn about the latest Microsoft 365 offers and promotions, get updates on Copilot and agents, and access resources to help you drive AI adoption.
On July 15, 2025, MCAPS Start for Partners will go deeper on our priorities and GTM strategies and will have dedicated CSP breakout sessions. I encourage everyone to mark that date in your calendar and join us as we build excitement for FY26. Registration details will be sent soon.
Together, we can shape the future of AI for small and medium enterprise customers in FY25 and beyond.
Join the conversation on Microsoft Partner Community’s CSP partners discussion board.
*Microsoft estimates based on IDC data, October 2024. Throughout this document, $ refers to US dollar (USD).
**Note: There are two errors on the May 1, 2025, price list preview for non-European Economic Area markets.
- The Microsoft 365 E5 no Teams – 3-Year SMC SKUs are absent from the May 1, 2025, price list preview.
- The Microsoft Teams Enterprise – 3-Year SMC SKUs are mistakenly listed with a June 1, 2025, "EOS Start Date." It should have a June 1, 2025, "GA Start Date."
The May 1, 2025, price list preview will be corrected and republished on May 8, 2025. These errors will not impact transactability beginning on June 1, 2025.