Visual Studio Team System pricing : get your wallets out... (or your kidneys :-))

The pricing for Visual Studio Team System has been set. And it will probably cause some deep thinking for most MSDN subscribers.

Two things are happening:

• MSDN subscriptions are being revamped
  
• Visual Studio pricing is considerably higher as in the past.

See the two sections below for the changes in the MSDN subscribtions and the currently set pricing. Note that the pricing is set for 1-4 developers, and you could maybe receive some discounts if the numbers go up. So I think there’s going to be some though negotiations with the Microsoft Sales Representatives…

Furthermore, something I find not applicable anymore, is the conversion rate Microsoft is doing from USD to Euro. At this time, 1 Euro is approximately 1,22 USD. However, in the numbers below, Microsoft is calculating such that 1 Euro is 0,93 USD. This means that based on the current conversion rates, you will be charged 30% extra. This calculation is based on conversion rates from quite some time ago, so again, a strong negotiation argument I think for european companies…

Fur current MSDN subcribers, it is interesting to know, that they will be paying the Renewal price. For those without subscriptions, the Retail price is applicable.

The items below have been copied from the Microsoft site, so for full details, visit How To Buy Visual Studio Team System. Furthermore, to cheer you up, visit this cartoon at TSS.

As a final note, I am not saying that you are not getting Value for Money, because much of the competition for this line of product is at a comparable, or higher price level. But I do think most Microsoft customers are not expecting these price levels for development tools…

What is the transition plan for existing MSDN Universal and MSDN Enterprise subscribers?