Cheap Ways of Acquiring Microsoft Products
ANOTHER NOTE: Thanks to Mikey J for his comment about the renewal process. He’s right… At the end of each subscription year, each MAPS subscriber must re-enroll in the initiative.
NOTE: Thanks to Susan for her comment about the eligibility requirements for the Microsoft Action Pack Subscription. Below is a snippet from the Microsoft web site. The emphasis is mine. Please review the complete terms for full details about the MAPS program.
The Microsoft Action Pack Subscription is designed for all businesses whose primary function is to (i) sell, service, and support or (ii) to build solutions on the Microsoft platform or provide solutions based on Microsoft products and technologies to independent, third-party customers. Examples of qualifying businesses include accounting professionals, consulting service providers, independent software vendors (ISVs), independent hardware vendors, large account resellers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), small business specialists, support providers, system integrators, system builders, training providers, Web designers, value-added resellers, and value-added providers that sell more than 75 percent of their products and services to customers outside their own company.
Examples of non-qualifying entities include: nonprofit organizations, academic institutions, students, government offices, and businesses whose primary focus is not IT related. Specific types of businesses whose primary focus is non-IT related, but that have significant influence on technology purchases, may qualify to participate in the Microsoft Action Pack Subscription.
Back to my original post…
Notice how the title reads, “Cheap Ways of Acquiring Microsoft Products” and not “Free Ways of Getting Your Hands on Microsoft Products” 
The first thing you need to do is to enroll your business as a Registered Member in the Microsoft Partner Program. Yes, it’s a little annoying that you must have a Windows Live ID account to register, but once you’ve got a Live ID account, visiting any of the Microsoft web sites is a much more personable (and pleasant) experience. It takes less than 15 minutes to enroll in the Microsoft Partner Program and once you’re registered you’ll be eligible to apply for a couple of Partner Programs that can provide Microsoft products, such as Microsoft Vista, Visual Studio, SQL Server or SharePoint much more cheaply than you can purchase a retail store or online.
One of the programs that I’m currently registered for is the Microsoft Action Pack Subscription. According to the Microsoft web site:
Microsoft Action Pack Subscription (MAPS) provides Registered Members of the Microsoft Partner Program internal-use, full-version software and sales resources to help you meet your sales goals, stay competitive, and grow your business.
You must be a Registered Microsoft Partner and pass an online assessment to qualify for the MAPS program. You can choose from several different online courses, including courses such as “Make the Most of Your Registered Member Partnership”, “Understanding Software-plus-Services” and “Microsoft Office System Sales Training“. Not all online courses are offered in multiple languages, so please check the Microsoft Partner Program web site for all the latest details. Once you finish the online course, you take an online assessment and need to score at least 70 to be eligible for the program. Assuming you pass the online assessment (and it’s one of those tests anyone with half a brain could pass), you’re now eligible for the MAPS program. It’s not free. When I applied for the program, the cost was $299. Please check the MAPS web site for current pricing.
What do you get in the MAPS program? Software and lots of it. When you enroll in the MAPS program and pay your fee, you will receive an introductory shipment that includes a boatload of Microsoft software. My shipment included:
- Windows Vista
- Microsoft Office Enterprise 2007
- Microsoft Office Project Professional 2007 (click here for a 60-day trial of Microsoft Office Project 2007)
- Microsoft Office Visio Professional 2007
- Windows Server 2008
- Windows SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition
- Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 Enterprise Edition
- … and many more.
I don’t recall what the retail value of all the software that you get for being a part of the MAPS program, but suffice to say, it would be prohibitively expensive for most small businesses to acquire this software at a retail cost. Now, please keep in mind that the software you receive as part of the MAPS program is “… internal-use software for internal business purposes, application development, and testing.” Check the MAPS program web site for more details.
As a MAPS member, you get a package every quarter. The January 2009 Quarterly Update Kit is scheduled to include:
- Windows Beta 7
- Microsoft Virtual PC 2007
- Windows Small Business Server 2008 Standard Edition
- Windows Essential Business Server 2008 Standard Edition
- Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008.
There are two special edition kits that you can obtain as a member of the MAPS program. One is the Special Edition Web Solutions toolkit, which includes Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 Standard and the Microsoft Expression Studio 2. The other is the Small Business Specialist Community Special Edition toolkit. This toolkit includes additional resources that are designed for partners that support the small and medium business (SMB) market.
Microsoft also offers Empower for ISVs and the Microsoft BizSpark programs. I’ll write about these two programs in a future post.
Please do not advertise this without clearly stating that this is a program for Information technology firms that provide services based on Microsoft solutions.
The Microsoft Partner Program is designed only for businesses whose primary function is to sell, service, support, or build solutions on the Microsoft platform, or to provide solutions based on Microsoft products and technologies to independent third-party customers. Examples of qualifying businesses are consulting services providers, independent software vendors (ISVs), independent hardware vendors, large account resellers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), support providers, system integrators, system builders, training providers, value-added resellers, and value-added providers that sell more than 75 percent of their products and services to customers outside their own company. Examples of non-qualifying entities are non-profit organizations, academic institutions, students, government offices, and businesses whose primary focus is non-IT-related activities. Specific types of businesses whose primary focus is non-IT related, but who have significant influence on technology purchases, may qualify to participate in the Microsoft Partner Program.
If you are a non profit firm look to techsoup.com for cheap software. But the rank and file small business is not eligible for this software.
Susan – Thanks for your comments. I have updated my original post by including the language from the MAPS web site.
… and you have to renew every year. Those licenses are good only for each year that you’ve paid for the MAPS subscription. You can’t sign up, get the updates for a year, and keep using those licenses forever. If you don’t renew, you have to uninstall all of those applications.
Yes, they keep working and you can get updates, but it’s just not right. There are too many small businesses out there taking advantage of this. Microsoft may look the other way, but it’s still wrong. As a company that provides support, I wouldn’t want to deal with any other small business looking to cut corners like this.
Mikey J – You’re right about the renewal process. I’ve updated my post with that information.