Dynamics AX 2012 Coming to EA

Dynamics AX 2012 will be the first enterprise resource planning (ERP) software sold in Microsoft Volume Licensing when it becomes available under Enterprise Agreements (EAs) Sept. 1, 2012. Dynamics AX is Microsoft’s high-end ERP product, aimed at global midmarket companies and business units of larger companies. EA purchases may offer the best unit pricing for Dynamics AX, particularly if the EA already includes a large volume of Microsoft server products. However, the existing Dynamics licensing program will still offer some advantages to customers over EAs, and Dynamics AX implementation partners will probably find the existing program more profitable.

EA Offers an Additional Licensing Path

An EA lets organizations with 250 or more PCs license almost any Microsoft business software or services offering. EAs typically offer the best unit pricing, including significant discounts on server software. However, some licenses must be purchased organization-wide or in certain combinations. All purchases in an EA commit customers to annual Software Assurance (SA) coverage for the remaining term of the EA, giving them rights to future software upgrades and other benefits. EAs typically run for a renewable three-year term.