Sales updates
Microsoft Promotions
Copilot promos
Business
- Microsoft 365 Copilot Business (annual commit): 14.29% off, all customers, 1-300 seats, through 31 Dec 2026
- Business Basic + Copilot Business bundle (annual commit): 25% off, all customers, 1-300 seats, through 31 Dec 2026
Enterprise
- Microsoft 365 Copilot (annual): 15% off for 300-9,999 seats, or 30% off for 1,000-9,999 seats, through 30 Sep 2026
- Microsoft 365 Copilot (3-year commit): 15% off, 300+ seats, through 30 Sep 2026
Microsoft 365 Enterprise suites
- M365 E5 (annual commit): 15% off for new-to-E5 customers, through 30 Sep 2026
- M365 E3 & E5 (3-year commit): 10% off, new-to-E3/E5 customers, through 30 Sep 2026
- M365 E7 (annual commit): 10% off (10+ seats) or 15% off (100+ seats), all customers, through 30 Sep 2026
- M365 E7 (3-year commit): 15% off (300+ seats), all customers, through 30 Sep 2026
Security
- Purview Suite for Business Premium: up to 50% off when paired with Copilot Business / Business Premium, through 31 Dec 2026
- Microsoft Sentinel 50 GB commitment tier: up to 32% off, through 31 Dec 2026 – locks promotional pricing to 31 Mar 2027
Dynamics
- Dynamics 365 Bridge to Cloud (3-year): 30% off for existing on-prem customers migrating to the cloud, through 31 Dec 2027.
Microsoft Copilot Business TRIAL launch – Copilot in 30
Microsoft launches a 30-day Copilot Business trial starting 1 August 2026. This motion will help partners land first-time Copilot wins through a guided, 30-day SMB evaluation – a free 25-seat, 30-day Microsoft 365 Copilot Business trial, available through CSP for a limited time.
- 25-user, 30-day Microsoft 365 Copilot Business trial
- $0 trial SKU, live on the Pax8 Marketplace 1 August 2026
- Available for a limited time (~H1 FY27)
- One trial (25 users) per customer – no extensions or quantity changes mid-trial
- It auto-renews to a paid subscription by default (25 seats, annual/monthly billing) with a 7-day cancellation window. Partners can cancel, adjust the renewal seat count, term, and billing frequency before conversion.
Best-fit customers: Existing M365 Business Standard/Premium accounts, new to Copilot (no paid Copilot licenses), with up to 300 users.
Call to action:
- Read Pax8 Copilot in 30 Blog
- Know the motion: review the Partner Playbook and Customer Kit
- Get first trials in the ground: aim to have each active M365 Business customer provision their trials in the first 30 days, then support adoption and conversion.
- Identify: use Pax8 Microsoft NCE Tracker/Renewals report under the Subscriptions tab on the Pax8 Marketplace to target your customers. You can also use ASPX data from Microsoft. Launch a campaign to new-to-Copilot customers (campaign email templates are in Partner Playbook and Customer Kit)
- Plan: Help customers maximise their Copilot trial with the Copilot Success Planner – guide adoption, track progress, and build a clear path to long-term success.
- Activate: provision trial via the Pax8 Marketplace, help customers configure settings, assign licenses, and ready users.
- Convert: review outcomes and move to paid. Lead with the Copilot/bundle promos.
Microsoft 365 Copilot Nonprofit Margin
The margin for Microsoft 365 Copilot for Nonprofit was not reflected in July pricing due to an issue with the pricing data received from Microsoft. Microsoft corrected this on 1 August.
Pax8 will be adjusting the margin internally for partners who purchased or renewed Microsoft 365 Copilot for Nonprofit during July. This only affected the following SKU: Microsoft 365 Copilot (Nonprofit Pricing) – CFQ7TTC0MM8R:000T
No action is required from partners, and existing subscriptions will continue without interruption.
Updated Copilot Margins
Microsoft has increased the standard partner margin for M365 Copilot Business and M365 Business bundles, including:
- M365 Copilot Business
- M365 Business Basic and Copilot
- M365 Business Standard and Copilot
- M365 Business Premium and Copilot
Copilot Business + Zensai Offer
Zensai is an AI-powered Human Success Platform that integrates directly into Microsoft365 (including Teams, SharePoint, Outlook, and Copilot). Its mission is to help organizations unlock human potential by combining learning, engagement, and performance management in one seamless experience.
M365 Copilot Business & Zensai customer enablement promotional program is designed to provide partners with the incentive to sell a net new subscription of over 10+ licenses of Copilot Business, Copilot for Nonprofit or Copilot Business Premium Bundle licenses. They are then eligible to get the same amount of licenses Zensai free for a year.
- Note that Zensai is an annual commitment, billed monthly
- Within 30 days of net new purchase of Copilot, partner must enroll through the form https://pages.pax8.com/Pax8-Copilot-Zensai.html
- Within the same 30 days of purchase and enrollment, partner must check out Zensai licenses to access the promotion
Microsoft Software Pricing Update
Starting 1 October 2026, Microsoft will start applying a 5% premium to annual-term CSP software subscriptions billed monthly. This impacts products such as Windows Server, SQL Server, Client Access Licences (CALs), System Center.
The change only affects annual commitment subscriptions with monthly billing. Annual commitment with annual billing remains unchanged. Existing subscriptions will see the uplift applied at renewal on or after 1 October 2026. If you have customers renewing after 1 October, now is a good time to review upcoming renewals and set expectations around pricing changes.
Cloud & AI Platforms Update
Thinking about Azure for your customer? Start with an assessment.
Assess, Deploy, and Earn USD $2,000
Many Azure conversations stall because customers aren’t sure where to begin, what’s involved, or what the costs might look like. To help with that, Pax8 offers an Azure Assessment and Rebate Programme designed to identify migration opportunities and build a clear path to Azure.
The Pax8 team will assess your customer’s current environment, provide recommendations, and help develop an Azure migration roadmap. If the assessment results in a qualifying Azure deployment within 30 days, you may also be eligible for a USD $2,000 incentive.
This offer is available to all global Pax8 partners with Ignite Voyager Alliance status or above.
To get started, complete the interest form and your Pax8 Account Manager will be in touch to discuss the next steps.
Program Updates
Growth Margin
From October 2026, Microsoft will introduce a new Growth Margin programme as a permanent part of CSP partner economics. Unlike a temporary promotion or discount, Growth Margin rewards partners for driving eligible customer growth, including:
- New-to-offer customers
- Seat growth
- Strategic product upsell and cross-sell motions
The standard base margin will continue to apply to renewals and ongoing subscriptions. Partners who meet the qualifying growth criteria will instead earn the higher Growth Margin rate. This is not an additional margin on top of the base margin, as the Growth Margin already includes the base margin.
The programme applies to select CSP licence-based offers, including:
- Microsoft 365 Copilot
- Microsoft 365 E5
- Microsoft 365 E7
- Microsoft Defender Suite
- Microsoft Purview Suite
- Windows 365 Enterprise
Please note that Nonprofit and Education SKUs are not eligible for Growth Margin.
New process to redeem Partner Cloud Benefits
Microsoft is modernising how partners redeem cloud licence benefits. Benefits will now be redeemed via a guided experience in Partner Center using a $0 purchase flow, replacing key‑based activation and ensuring benefits are securely tied to the partner’s billing account.
Benefit expiry dates are now aligned to the partner benefits package activation date (not the redemption date), which means the 30‑day grace period has been removed.
This change does not alter the benefits themselves – only how they’re redeemed and managed. The new experience is already live for Partner Success Expanded in Australia, with Partner Launch Benefits and Partner Success Core Benefits rolling out shortly. Other regions will transition by the end of July 2026.
Microsoft Skilling and Certification
Partners who invest in upskilling are better positioned to deliver greater value to clients, differentiate themselves in a competitive market, and unlock new revenue opportunities. Earning Microsoft certifications also helps you secure the 25 points required for incentives and rebates in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program (MAICPP), directly supporting both growth and profitability.
To help you get there, Pax8 provides free certification vouchers – reach out to your Channel Account Manager to get started.
Microsoft has replaced MS‑900 (Microsoft 365 Fundamentals) with a new intermediate option: AB‑900: Microsoft Copilot Fundamentals across both Enterprise and SMB tracks.
On top of that, Microsoft is rolling out new AI-focused cert paths (AI Business Professional, AI Transformation Leader, Agentic AI Business Solutions Architect) and has introduced AB‑620: AI Agent Builder Associate in beta to support partners building real AI capability.
APAC Pax8 Microsoft enablement sessions
Pax8 and Microsoft continue their strong collaboration with The Power of Microsoft Webinar series, exploring how Microsoft’s solutions are helping organisations innovate faster, work smarter and lead confidently in an AI-driven world.
