| There will be more piracy The Moscow office of Microsoft (MS) is expanding its paid services. From February 1, Russia and the CIS will charge money for using the previously free hotline. At the same time, prices for “boxes” will remain at the same level. Analysts believe that all this only benefits pirates.
When asked why the price of the product as a whole changes, but the cost of the program remains the same, Hamid Kostoev, marketing manager at the Moscow office of MS, replied that technical support was being reorganized to focus on certain user groups. Although the pricing scheme is quite flexible, he noted, changes in support payments will not affect the prices of the software itself.
In the meantime, for all newly purchased products - from licensed copies of desktop operating systems to development tools - free support by phone and email is limited. In addition, a rule is being introduced that you can apply for free only if problems arise with the latest and penultimate versions of programs. The earlier ones are generally removed from service. The buyer has the right to five free calls. At the same time, the “five” does not include any number of calls regarding problems with installing or uninstalling a program.
The innovations are aimed mainly at computer specialists of companies who have purchased MS products for professionals, but are trying to get free answers to complex questions.
As the head of the Moscow MS technical support department, Evgeniy Solokhin, explained, over the past three years, 94% of users were limited to just five calls. But 6% of users contacted us more than five times, and their questions accounted for 55% of all questions asked. This 6%, according to MS, consists of 3/4 computer specialists. And for them and their complex issues, there are special services in MS itself and certified support centers.
Direct MS support has several levels. Thus, for large companies applying for the paid Premier service, a response to 60 or more calls will cost $55,000. For five or more calls from a computer specialist, the company where he works will have to pay $1,385.
However, individual users will now have to pay. They will be forced to either buy the right for every next five calls for $60, or switch to subscription services at support centers.
The head of the research firm Laminfo, Igor Aglitsky, told the Vremya Novostey newspaper that before introducing its innovations, MS “should have dealt with the pirates.” In his opinion, up to 95% of MS programs were purchased from them. Now, after the total increase in the price of MS products, pirates will receive a competitive advantage. Alexander LEVINSKY |
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