However, it did carve out an exception for Office, saying that new perpetual-license Office versions for Windows and Mac would still be available next year.

During Ignite in September, Microsoft indicated that its coming new on-premises application servers, such the next Exchange Server and SharePoint Server, would only be available by subscription, starting sometime in the second half of 2021. The trend over the years has been for Microsoft to steer organizations toward its various subscription-based models, and that trend is continuing. Under the Modern Lifecycle Policy, Microsoft can kill a product or a product capability with, at best, a 30-day advance notice to an organization, if that. Microsoft 365 applications follow the ' Modern Lifecycle Policy,' where support is contingent upon the software staying up to date and there are no long-term product lifecycle servicing promises extended to organizations. The Microsoft 365 service follows a monthly subscription-based pay model where the products get monthly feature updates. Microsoft really wants organizations to switch to Microsoft 365 services, though. Perpetual-license Office products for businesses, such as Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac, are bought once and follow Microsoft's traditional 10-year support model (on the Windows side), called the ' Fixed Lifecycle Policy.' These products are somewhat static and do not get regular monthly feature updates. It now mostly calls them 'Microsoft 365' products. Back in March, Microsoft announced a general product rebrand for its Office 365 products. Microsoft now seems to be using the descriptor 'Microsoft 365 Apps,' instead of Office 365 apps. Microsoft also explained that it isn't guaranteeing that the Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac suites, which continue to function, will be able to connect with various Office 365 services in the near future. The end-of-support phase means that no more software updates arrive from Microsoft for those products, including security patches. Microsoft on Monday noted the end of support for Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac, which are 'perpetual-license' versions of Microsoft's productivity suite software.

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