Visual Studio 2010 Packaging And Licensing

The Visual Studio product is packaged to meet the needs of the customer as shown below, with Visual Studio Ultimate containing the whole solution.


    


The objective is to provide organisations with simplified ways to purchase and license core development technologies, Microsoft Corp. has announced a new packaging lineup and licensing options for Microsoft Visual Studio 2010. Going forward, customers will be able to choose from three main versions:

• Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate with MSDN. The comprehensive suite of application life-cycle management tools for software teams to help ensure quality results from design to deployment

• Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Premium with MSDN. A complete toolset to help developers deliver scalable, high-quality applications

• Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Professional with MSDN. The essential tool for basic development tasks to assist developers in easily implementing their ideas

MSDN subscriptions are included with the purchase of Visual Studio 2010 Professional with MSDN, Visual Studio 2010 Premium with MSDN and Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate with MSDN. The specific level of MSDN subscription benefits corresponds with the Ultimate, Premium and Professional designators in the Visual Studio 2010 product name. Visual Studio 2010 Professional will also be available for purchase without an MSDN subscription.


    
  

The Ultimate Offer—Buy Now!

To help customers transition to Visual Studio 2010, Microsoft is introducing the Ultimate Offer for Visual Studio 2010. The Ultimate Offer is available to customers who have purchased one of the following products on or before March 22, 2010:

• Visual Studio Professional 2008 with MSDN Premium
• Visual Studio Team System 2008 Development Edition with MSDN Premium
• Visual Studio Team System 2008 Architecture Edition with MSDN Premium
• Visual Studio Team System 2008 Test Edition with MSDN Premium
• Visual Studio Team System 2008 Database Edition with MSDN Premium

Eligible MSDN Premium subscription customers (at the time of launch) will gain access to one higher stock-keeping unit (SKU) level. Microsoft is extending the offer to current customers, as well as customers who upgrade to any Visual Studio 2008 product with an MSDN Premium subscription on or before March 22, 2010.  The offer is extended until April 30 2010.

For more information on the above offer, please follow the link Visual Studio 2010 Offers from the main Microsoft website. 

For more information on the Visual Studio 2010 product or licensing package please highlight the Licensing link.

Alternatively, please contact our Visual Studio Team if you have any other query.




Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How do customers know which Visual Studio package is right for them?

A: After hearing from customers, Microsoft decided to introduce a simplified SKU structure in Visual Studio 2010, which will make purchasing decisions more straightforward. Customers can expect greater value in their purchases of MSDN and Visual Studio 2010. Each level has benefits depending on the specific developer need. Going forward, customers will be able to choose from three main versions of Visual Studio 2010: Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate with MSDN, Visual Studio 2010 Premium with MSDN or Visual Studio 2010 Professional with MSDN. Microsoft encourages developers to find more information on product specifics by visiting http://microsoft.com/visualstudio to find out which version of Visual Studio 2010 is best for their needs.


Q: Which version of Visual Studio should current Visual Studio Team System customers target?

A: Customers will find that Visual Studio Ultimate includes all of the concepts and capabilities of Visual Studio Team System. Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate provides a robust solution for Application Lifecycle Management (ALM), including all role SKUs from Visual Studio Team System 2008, in addition to other significant innovations, including the following:

• New architecture tools including new Unified Modeling Language (UML) assets that transfer your architecture from whiteboard to living assets
• New tools that enable testing teams to capture rich and actionable bugs at different points in time
• New testing tools that bring business users, test generalists and others into the process
• An integrated development environment that enables development across cloud, on-premises and multiple platforms
• With the highest level of MSDN subscription, all of Microsoft’s server and client applications for development and test usage

Q: What is the Ultimate Offer, and which customers are eligible?

A: The Ultimate Offer is a promotion to help customers upgrade to Visual Studio 2010 while getting the most value possible. The Ultimate Offer is available to customers who have purchased one of the following products on or before March 22, 2010:

• Visual Studio Professional 2008 with MSDN Premium
• Visual Studio Team System 2008 Development Edition with MSDN Premium
• Visual Studio Team System 2008 Architecture Edition with MSDN Premium
• Visual Studio Team System 2008 Test Edition with MSDN Premium
• Visual Studio Team System 2008 Database Edition with MSDN Premium