Delayed Office 365 portal finally gets Australian launch

A key plank in Microsoft's Office 365 sales strategy will debut on 29 August when Office 365 becomes available via the Microsoft Online Portal in Australia, following significant delays.

The launch means SMBs with 250 PCs or less wanting monthly billing for Office 365 will be able to buy direct or via a reseller rather than having to purchase via Telstra.

All Office 365 SKUs will be available via the portal by annual or monthly billing according to an FAQ published by Microsoft.

Sales via the portal are billed directly by Microsoft, not the partner. However resellers, called advisors under the scheme, will be able to earn fees by attaching a "Partner of Record" to a customer account.

Office 365 was original intended to be available via the Portal on 2 April, but was delayed with Microsoft saying more work had to be done to make the purchasing experience seamless and smooth. Microsoft then issued anther apology in June.

HubOne founder Nick Beaugeard said the news was fantastic. "We couldn't be happier as our Australian processes can be the same as every other country," he told CRN.

This year HubOne launched a $200 per user "no lock-in" subscription for accountants including Office 365, Xero Practise Manager and various other products - these Office 365 sales are via Open licensing.

The provider plans to use the portal for sales of Office 365 to customers that aren't accountants.

Telstra will continue to sell Office 365 via T-Suite. The FAQ released by Microsoft states that incentives for customers to buy from Telstra include "flexible subscription models, access to our unique sales offers and technical support, dedicated partner support and the scope to integrate broader cloud services."

As well as selling Office 365 directly via the portal, Microsoft recently revealed plans to offer free migration services, limited to more basic onboarding and email migration. More complex work will be handed to a partner.

The free migration will be for companies with 150 or more Office 365 seats.