How Does Microsoft Copilot Impact Your Unified Agreement?.

Microsoft Copilot is the newest service on the block, bringing the power of enhanced automation to workplaces everywhere. However, despite bringing so much positive potential to the table, it’s hiding a little secret: your Unified pricing could be affected by the introduction of Copilot.

Adding AI into your ecosystem is a boon, but depending on how it’s used and how much you use it, it may be a financial bane.

Microsoft Copilot is an AI assistant that supplies you with coding help, image creation, text generation, information retrieval, and more with a few simple prompts. You can increase productivity of your workforce through Copilot integration, giving employees new ways to get caught up on missed meetings, aligned on tasks, and find useful data for a project. No more searching through the backend for a specific file when Copilot can do it for you.

Microsoft has rolled Copilot out in three tiers. There is a free version available to everyone, along with Copilot Pro and Copilot 365.

The main differences between Copilot Pro and Copilot 365 are:

• Protection: Pro offers commercial-grade protection, while Copilot 365 offers enterprise-grade protection. You’re paying more for better security.
• Integration: Microsoft 365 Copilot integrates with Teams, unlike Copilot Pro.
• Price: Copilot Pro is $20 per month per user, while Copilot 365 is $30 per month per user.
• Audience: Copilot Pro is designed for individuals or smaller businesses, while Copilot 365 is intended for large enterprises.

Odds are that you will be using Copilot Pro or 365 in some capacity in the future if you are part of an enterprise. Copilot 365 is more expensive, but offers more than Pro. It has greater protection, customization, and offers you access to Copilot in the Microsoft 365 suite, while Copilot Pro only offers this if you have a Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscription.

Both help individuals complete otherwise tedious or time-consuming tasks with ease. Is the time saved worth the monthly cost? It depends on how much more you can achieve with the time saved.

While you are paying $20 per user per month for Copilot Pro, there’s a bit of a darker side to the service. Here are some of the main concerns:

• Limited Additional Features: Copilot Pro barely offers more features than the free version.
• Access Requirements: It gives you access to Copilot in Microsoft 365, but you must have a Personal or Family account.

• Priority Model Access: Offers priority model access.
• Commercial Data Protection: This protection only applies when users are signed into their work account using their organization’s Entra ID.

• Personal Use Limitation: If you are using it for personal use outside of your work setting or aren’t logged in to Entra, the protections don’t apply.
• Business Risk: This poses a potential risk to your business if you opted into Copilot Pro instead of 365.
• Enterprise-Grade Security: Copilot 365 gives you enterprise-grade security, which keeps you protected across all Microsoft Copilot-integrated products everywhere. This blanket protection is a substantial benefit over Copilot Pro’s security offering.

• Do you take the risk and make sure that every user is always signed into Entra for Copilot Pro protection, or do you spend more to get larger security coverage? If you plan to adopt Copilot in any capacity, this should be a priority point.

Your Unified support price will go up after adopting Copilot.

Your Unified support price will go up after adopting Copilot. Simply put, the more Microsoft products you add to your list of support needs, the higher the price goes. This may not hit your current agreement, but when you need to renew and Microsoft sees that you have Copilot Pro or 365, they will bring the price up accordingly. Similarly, you are now paying a hefty chunk of change for a new AI service.

Whether that’s Copilot Pro or Copilot 365, that’s $20-30 per month per user. If you have a large enterprise, that cost can be astronomical when coupled with your Unified support costs going up.

At the time of your Unified support renewal, you’ll need a strategic approach to secure price concessions to manage these increased costs effectively. Consider the following strategies:

• Negotiation for Bulk Pricing: Engage Microsoft to discuss bulk purchasing options for a substantial number of seats, potentially reducing the per-user monthly fee.
• Bundling Services: Attempt to include these costs in your overall support agreement, simplifying financial planning and potentially garnering discounts.

Third-Party Support by US Cloud: If the negotiation strategies above do not pan out, consider third-party support options. US Cloud offers extensive Unified support that can maintain smooth operation of your Copilot services without the corresponding increase in your Unified support costs.

The price of Microsoft support feels like it’s always going up, which is why US Cloud is modeled to give you a breath of fresh air. Our solutions save you 30-50% on your annual Microsoft support spend while offering rapid response and resolution. We have financially backed SLAs that guarantee 15-minute responses for tickets of all severities and, on average, have resolution times that are twice as fast as Microsoft.

We have a deep understanding of the Microsoft product suite, with engineers that have an average of 14 years of Microsoft product experience working closely with your company to help you achieve success. We provide proactive monitoring and reactive break/fix, so no stone is left unturned. We also have an extensive understanding of Copilot and all of its nuances so any problem that arises can be promptly handled by our team.

When you need faster Microsoft support for less, US Cloud has you covered.