Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office LTSC 2021 generally available

Effective October 8, 2021, Microsoft Office LTSC 2021, the next perpetual license of Office is available. LTSC stands for Long Term Servicing Channel:

  • Office LTSC Professional Plus 2021
  • Office LTSC Standard 2021
  • Office LTSC Standard for Mac 2021
  • Project * Professional 2021
  • Project * Standard 2021
  • Visio LTSC Professional 2021
  • Visio LTSC Standard 2021

* Microsoft omits “LTSC” with Project 2021

Office LTSC offers five years of support and is built for specific situations, such as regulated devices that cannot accept feature updates for years at a time, process control devices on the manufacturing floor that are not connected to the internet, and specialty systems that must stay locked in time.

As installation technology Office LTSC uses Click-to-Run instead of Windows Installer (MSI) as with Office 2016 or earlier. Activation remains the same by using Key Management Service (KMS) or Multi Activation Key (MAK).

Office LTSC 2021 is separate from the Office that’s available through Microsoft 365 or Office 365 plans. If you have deployed Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise (previously named Office 365 ProPlus), you don’t need Office LTSC 2021. You already have all the features that are included in Office LTSC 2021, along with many more features that aren’t available in Office LTSC 2021.

Office LTSC 2021 won’t receive any new features after its release. If you want to get new Office features on an on-going basis, you should consider moving to a Microsoft 365 (or Office 365) plan that includes Microsoft 365 apps for enterprise, i.e. Microsoft 365 E3 or E5.

For the announcement, please visit: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2021/09/16/office-ltsc-is-now-generally-available/

For useful deployment information, please visit: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/deployoffice/ltsc2021/overview.

Please contact us for more information and to request a quote.

Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office LTSC and Office 2021 preview

On February 18, 2021, Microsoft announced their preview of Microsoft Office Long Term Servicing Channel (LTSC), the next perpetual release of Microsoft Office.

Office LTSC offers five years of support and will be released on October 8, 2021. A commercial preview of Microsoft Office LTSC will be available in April 2021.

Microsoft Office LTSC is built for specific situations, such as regulated devices that cannot accept feature updates for years at a time, process control devices on the manufacturing floor that are not connected to the internet, and specialty systems that must stay locked in time and require a long-term servicing channel.

The price of Office LTSC will increase by up to 10 percent at the time of general availability.

Microsoft also plans to release Office 2021 for consumers and small businesses on October 8, 2021.

Office 2021 also offers five years of support as perpetual license. The price will remain the same, with more details about new features to be announced closer to general availability.

For the announcement, please visit: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2021/02/18/upcoming-commercial-preview-of-microsoft-office-ltsc/.

For information on upcoming versions of Exchange Server, SharePoint Server, Skype for Business Server and Project Server within the new Office version, please visit: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/exchange-team-blog/exchange-news-and-announcements-microsoft-ignite-2020-edition/ba-p/1662224.

Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Online Services

Microsoft Office Online name change

Microsoft announced that they will remove the branding “Online” for the web version of Office and introduce new terminology for the apps on the web. Apps like Word Online are now called “Word for the web” or “Word in a browser”. This new terminology is already reflected in the product terms. It is important to note that this brand change only applies to Office applications. There is no change to the branding for Microsoft “Online” server products – especially Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Project Online, and Office Online Server. For the official Microsoft announcement, please visit: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/Office-Apps-Blog/Why-Office-Online-is-Now-Simply-Office/ba-p/760207.

Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office 365

Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2019 removed from Home Use Program

Microsoft announced that Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2019 and Microsoft Office Home and Business 2019 are no longer available as Home Use Program offers. Microsoft Office customers in the Home Use Program can now only buy Microsoft Office 365 Home or Microsoft Office 365 Personal subscriptions.

For further information on the Microsoft Home Use Program, please visit: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/home-use-program/frequently-asked-questions.

Microsoft 365, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office 365

Microsoft 365 From SA rights

Microsoft has decided that, contrary to their earlier announcement, they will not now remove the Microsoft Office Professional Plus installation rights that customers are currently entitled to with Microsoft 365 E3 and E5 From SA licenses. In the following announcement, Microsoft confirms that they will retain their “Dual Use” policy: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/licensing/news/microsoft365-dual-use-rights-update.

The Microsoft Product Terms for June 2019 reflect this decision. To download the Microsoft Product Terms, please visit: http://www.microsoftvolumelicensing.com/DocumentSearch.aspx?Mode=3&DocumentTypeId=1&.

Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Software Assurance

Microsoft Office 365 Home Use Program Software Assurance Benefit

The new Office 365 Home Use Program (HUP) benefit is added to the February 2019 Product Terms. If a customer has Software Assurance Membership coverage on the Applications pool then employees may buy an Office 365 Home or Personal subscription through the Microsoft Home Use Program website at a discounted rate.
 
What’s interesting (and different to its Office 2019 HUP counterpart) is that employees may renew the subscription at the special HUP price regardless of whether they’re still employed by the qualifying organization and that organization’s Software Assurance Membership coverage status.
 
For more information about the Microsoft Home Use Program Benefit, please see the February 2019 Product Terms, page 80: http://www.microsoftvolumelicensing.com/DocumentSearch.aspx?Mode=3&DocumentTypeId=1&.

Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office 2019 On-Premises Licenses available

Microsoft announced the availability of Microsoft Office 2019. The corresponding Microsoft Office Servers 2019 will launch in November 2018. Hence, Microsoft Office 2016 version licenses have been removed from price lists.

As announced in a previous post regarding Microsoft Program and Pricing Adjustments there is a price increase of 10 percent comparing with Office 2016 version – except Campus (Enrollment for Education Solutions) and School programs.

Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office 365

Microsoft Office 365 F1 Plans replace Microsoft Office 365 K Plans

Microsoft Office 365 F1 Plans replace Microsoft Office 365 K Plans. These Microsoft Office 365 plans are designed to connect and engage firstline workers. Purpose-built to meet varied demands across multiple industries, these plans deliver the key capabilities to manage and unlock the skills, knowledge, and expertise of your firstline workforce.

For further information about Microsoft Office 365 F1 plans, please visit: https://products.office.com/en-us/business/office-365-f1.

Adobe Creative Cloud, Microsoft Office

Adobe Stock Add-In for Microsoft PowerPoint

The Adobe Stock Add-In for Microsoft PowerPoint makes it easier to find the perfect image to illustrate your presentations. The Adobe Stock Add-In integrates seamlessly with Microsoft PowerPoint so you can easily search for images without leaving your presentation. You can search for images by keyword, explore selected collections, or even perform a visual search by uploading an image of your own and having Adobe Stock find something similar. You can preview selected pictures inside your presentations. When you’re ready to license, simply connect to your existing Adobe Stock account or request an offer from SCHNEIDER IT MANAGEMENT.

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