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U.S. Partners Get Office 365 Fee Boost

Microsoft is offering partner advisor incentives of up to 38 percent on Office 365 for the next few weeks.

The promotion, called Cloud Easy, is part of the annual revenue sprint to the finish for Microsoft's fiscal year. "This is our maximum time of focus and energy," Cindy Bates, vice president of U.S. SMB and Distribution at Microsoft, said in an interview. Microsoft's fiscal year is over at the end of June.

The partner advisor fee is a percentage that Microsoft pays out to the Partner of Record on Office 365 sales. Microsoft recently streamlined the payment tiers. Now partners who sell up to 150 seats total across all their customers get 12 percent of the fees customers pay Microsoft the first year and 4 percent thereafter, for a total of 16 percent in the first year.

Partners who sell more than 150 seats get an additional 7 percent in the first year for a 23 percent first-year payment.

The Cloud Easy program adds 15 percent to the first-year payment. Partners with fewer than 150 seats will get 31 percent and partners with more than 150 seats will get 38 percent. The offer lasts through May, Bates said.

Posted by Scott Bekker on May 16, 2013


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