Promotional prices for some Visual Studio 2005 Team System (VSTS) products will make them more affordable for small teams of developers and for customers looking to upgrade to the complete suite of products. VSTS is a major upgrade to Visual Studio and includes many new features designed to help teams of developers work together more efficiently, along with new tools for software testers and architects, but the initial pricing for the product represents a steep increase for many developers.

Customers Surprised by Pricing

Microsoft began publicly discussing the features of VSTS in May 2004, but didn't announce pricing until Mar. 2005. VSTS consists of Team Foundation Server and three client editions: Team Edition for Software Architects, Team Edition for Software Developers, and Team Edition for Software Testers. The client editions are available individually or in a bundle, called Team Suite, that provides the features of all three editions in a single development environment. (For details on the contents of each of the client editions, see the chart "Team System Components by Edition" on page 20 of the Feb. 2005 Update.)

Large enterprise developers familiar with competing products, such as IBM's Rational product line, were not surprised by VSTS pricing, which is generally less than that of other enterprise tools vendors. However, many smaller developers were taken aback by several elements of the VSTS pricing.

First, many smaller customers expected a copy of Team Foundation Server to be included with the product or with their MSDN Universal subscriptions. Instead, Microsoft announced that Team Foundation Server would have to be licensed separately and would carry an Open License base price of US$2,230. Large organizations could amortize the server cost over many developers but small teams, such as consultants, would have faced a much higher per-developer cost.

Second, although MSDN Universal subscribers will receive their choice of one of the VSTS client editions (Software Architects, Software Developers, or Software Testers), they were unprepared for the price of upgrading to the Team Suite product (which, in the Open License volume licensing program, was US$4,039).

Small Teams Get a Break

Feedback from its developer customers prompted Microsoft to announce two changes designed specifically to help small teams of developers and those looking to upgrade to Team Suite.

First, MSDN Universal subscribers will receive a copy of Team Foundation Server that is limited to five users. By providing a free version of the server, Microsoft hopes to make VSTS more appealing to consultants and other small teams without reducing the price for large enterprises.

Second, Microsoft is introducing a promotional price for the upgrade to Team Suite. Through June 2006, MSDN Universal subscribers will be able to upgrade to Team Suite by paying only the higher Software Assurance cost associated with Team Suite, not the difference in the license prices. In the case of Open License, that amounts to an upgrade price of US$2,342 over the two-year term of the agreement compared with US$6,381 under the previous rules. By reducing the price of an upgrade from a single client edition to Team Suite, Microsoft is responding to complaints from customers in which architecture, development, and testing roles overlap, and who therefore need Team Suite to do their jobs.

Resources

For more details on VSTS 2005 licensing, see "VS 2005 Licensing Brings Major Changes" on page 14 of the May 2005 Update.