Microsoft Office 2024 is available as on-premises in 2024

The rumored coming of Microsoft Office 2024 may be seen as good news for organizations who are hoping for a productive suite that is new, modern and most importantly not subscription based alone. Everything offered on subscription base like Microsoft 365 for some organizations if given the choice, will opt for a one-time fee payment to own the offers.    

 Microsoft is to introduce onto the market a perpetual Office license after it introduced Office 2021. Users who are wondering what to do next after the two-year support offered their Office 2021 can hive a sigh of relief. Microsoft Office 2024 is coming to the rescue!   

Microsoft has officially announced that a commercial preview of the Office Long Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) 2024 will be out in April, with plans to reach general availability by the end of 2024.  

Microsoft will not only offer the program as a single purchase but will also release a Mac version that supports both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. Support updates will be available for the next five years after the release date.  

What offers are available on Microsoft Office 2021?   

Microsoft Office 2021 contained features that made work integration easy across users. It had all the Office applications with real-time collaboration features that permitted work done on the same file by two different users on different devices yet changes as were applied were seen instantly.    

The addition to Microsoft Office 2021 is the integrated Microsoft Teams that replaced Skype for Business. However, to enjoy the Microsoft Teams integration feature, you needed to be on the Professional Plus package.    

It was also with Microsoft Office 2021 that the XMATCH and XLOOKUP features were added to Excel which was useful to many users.    

There is an option to record your PowerPoint slideshow which was a new feature added to PowerPoint. Microsoft Office 2021 came with improved features which made productivity better.   

 How will Microsoft’s Office 2024 be purchased?    

Microsoft Office 2024, when introduced, will come also with a standalone offer for organizations who want to own its license perpetually. This means once you have paid the initial purchasing fee, worry less about monthly or recurring subscription. Again, note that your payment plan will be based on which of the two available plans you opt for.    

This is not to say the subscription payment plan to use Microsoft Office 2024 does not come with its benefits. There are features more frequently added and bugs fixed much quicker.      

But a sharp comparison between Microsoft Office 2021 and Microsoft Office 2024, Microsoft is likely to encourage more use of the former. Microsoft is very interested in subscription offers and this is a good revenue making means compared to a one-time perpetual license as offered by Microsoft Office 2024.    

What will Microsoft Office 2024 offer?   

The Office LTSC 2024 edition, when released as a perpetual version, will incorporate a limited selection of the features found in the Microsoft 365 apps. This version is set to introduce new meetings and enhanced search capabilities in Outlook. Additionally, users can look forward to a lot of fresh Excel features and functions, including Dynamic Charts and Arrays, alongside significant improvements in performance, security, and accessibility.   

Notably, Office 2024 LTSC and Office 2024 will exclude any features dependent on cloud connectivity or internet enabled. Consequently, this implies that Microsoft 365 Copilot and other AI-driven services integrated into the suite will not be compatible with this release.  

Office LTSC 2024 is set to launch without Microsoft Publisher, marking its phase-out, and will not include the Microsoft Teams app. Instead, Teams will be accessible as an independent download. Although Microsoft’s announcement on Office 2024 did not specifically mention Outlook, it is confirmed that the upcoming Outlook for Windows, which is currently in preview, will support the perpetual version of Office until at least 2029.  

Expectations of when Microsoft Office 2024 will be available    

Microsoft 365 hit the market on a subscription note. This offer grew immensely as described by industry watchers begging the question if there was going to ever be another Microsoft Office license offered as perpetual since the last one years ago.     

Well, there are signs pointing in the direction of Microsoft Office 2024, hitting the market during the second half of 2024 as a standalone offer or version.     

Expressing your frustration with subscription-based offers and how you are almost if not entirely left with nothing on the day you decide to cancel may be a thing of the past. Microsoft Office 2024 will offer you a perpetual license version.     

Our team of Microsoft licensing experts on standby to support you    

Our team of licensing experts is keeping an eye on pricing and exact date of release and will update you. With word out there on the perpetual license offer associated with Microsoft Office 2024, there will be the need to do a good job on licensing to avoid fines down the road.  

We can share scenarios with you to help you settle on the best decision and save on purchases. Licensing requirements will not be what you are used to and our independent understanding of what is required will be of help to you.  

Our team is on hand to offer expert advice and guidelines. However, for any cloud and licensing related conversations, speak to us for an independent, unbiased and precise solution.