Ingram Micro is paying rebates to partners who sell free trial subscriptions to select Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Office 365 SKUs.
The new Microsoft Remote Work Rebate Program, which went into effect today, will allow cloud resellers to collect up to $10 per seat, paid out as a credit through Ingram’s Cloud Marketplace, for every license that remains active at the close of the free trial’s one-year commitment.
The offer applies to qualified net new Microsoft 365 Business Basic (formerly known as Office 365 Business Essentials) and Office 365 E1 subscriptions purchased between May 4th and June 30th. Resellers must opt into the program between now and June 30th to participate.
Microsoft has been providing Microsoft 365 Business Basic and Office 365 E1 free for six months to new users, with an annual commitment, since March, when stay-at-home orders aimed at containing the spread of COVID-19 began rolling out on a widespread basis.
Both those plans include Microsoft Teams, the collaboration and videoconferencing application that has rapidly become an essential tool for remote workers. Teams had 75 million active daily users worldwide as of two weeks ago, up from 44 million in March and 20 million last November.
“This is an excellent opportunity to support our resellers as they look for new ways to be flexible with their customers,” said Duncan Robinson, executive director of business development at Ingram Micro Cloud, in a media statement. “Our new rebate program is an extension of our ‘More as a Service’ guiding principle, as it offers revenue opportunities for our resellers even while their customers enjoy Microsoft’s free trial. In the end, it’s a win-win.”
The new program pays partners $2 per Microsoft 365 Business Basic license if they sell 50 to 250 seats during the promotional period, $4 per license for 250 to 1,000 seats, and $8 per license for more than 1,000 seats. Office 365 E1 rebates total $2.50 per license for 50 to 250 seats, $5 per license between 250 and 1,000 seats, and $10 per license above 1,000 seats.
Ingram will pay rebates after month 12 of eligible subscriptions. Partners can expect to see credits appear in their Cloud Marketplace account within 45 days, the company says.
