As with previous Public Sector frameworks such as PSA09, PSA12 and CTA the Crown Commercial Service have negotiated and agreed the new framework with Microsoft known as the Digital Transformation Arrangement, or DTA. It is the successor to the Cloud Transformation Arrangement (CTA) that most Public Sector organisations are familiar with. This blog is part one of two and will explain the timelines of the Digital Transformation Arrangement.
As ever with these types of Framework, there are likely to be further dates scheduled for Microsoft to release FAQs and face-to-face training for partners before the DTA comes into effect on 1st May 2018. We will keep our customers informed on any further updates over the coming weeks and months.
DTA will immediately succeed the CTA when it expires on 30 April 2018 and DTA goes live on 1 May 2018. Like CTA, the DTA framework provides varying levels of discount on certain products and provides concessions unique to the UK Public-Sector.
One of the main concessions is the award of Level D pricing for all UK Public Sector bodies regardless of size, this differs from corporate organisations who are subject to 4 levels of pricing A-D based on the specific size of their organisation and how much they spend with Microsoft.
Where CTA provided further discounts over Level D on all on-premise products DTA does not. CTA was created to help customers move to the cloud by building in a timeframe to facilitate the move. DTA is focussed on helping customers realise the benefits of moving to the cloud and support their journey to Digital Transformation.
Three example timelines of customers and at what point DTA will affect them
Customer A who held an enrolment initially under PSA 12, expiring in August 2017, they then renew into a CTA enrolment for a 3-year term, taking them forward to 2020. At which point their 2020 renewal will be subject to the DTA terms and that DTA enrolment will then run until 2023.
Customer B has a CTA enrolment taken out in June 2015, so this agreement is now coming up for renewal in June 2018 at which point DTA will have gone live. As such their renewal will be a DTA enrolment under the terms of the DTA framework.
Customer C is a slightly different scenario. Customer C has no EA at present, and unfortunately, under CTA there were no concessions for new ESA (only renewals) after the cut-off date. However, DTA makes no such distinction so as of May 1st customers can take out new enrolments with DTA discounts regardless of their prior arrangements.
The key point to remember is any existing CTA enrolments you currently hold will be unaffected by these changes, they will only be of consideration to renewals or any new enrolments taken out after 1st May. If your CTA is due to end in the next 12 months, then speak to Trustmarque and we can help you plan for this.
Trustmarque have a number of dedicated Microsoft Licencing Specialists, known as Microsoft P-LSS, who are able to advise our customers on the most appropriate and cost-efficient solutions. As well as this our Account Managers are MCP qualified and are well placed to advise on your individual scenario. If you would like to discuss any Digital Transformation Arrangement queries, please contact your Trustmarque Account Manager directly or complete the form below.
Read: Discounts and licensing of Microsoft’s Digital Transformation Arrangement>
