Microsoft today announced a major expansion to its Microsoft 365 offerings. The idea behind Microsoft 365 is to provide a single integrated solution that combines subscriptions to Office 365, Windows 10 and (depending on the plan you choose) the Enterprise Mobility and Security suite into a single bundle with prices that start around $12.50 per month and employee for the most basic tier. Today, the company is adding two new tiers to the service: Microsoft 365 F1 for frontline workers and a plan for education users.
The idea behind all the Microsoft 365 plans is essentially the same, though Microsoft is clearly aiming to offer a wider range of solutions for different businesses and institutions by creating a wider range of targeted bundles.
Microsoft 365 for education comes with the usual fixings (Office 365 for Education, Windows 10, Enterprise Mobility and Security) but also includes the Minecraft Education Edition.
Microsoft 365 F1, unsurprisingly, doesn’t include Minecraft, but does come with all the other standard tools. As Microsoft notes, these firstline workers have not been served all that well by most technology companies, yet they are often the most important touch points for customers. F1 isn’t all that different from the other 365 plans, but Microsoft notes that F1 includes support for new devices (though I assume those also work with every other 365 plan), updates to Windows 10 for more locked-down single-purpose experience and support for Microsoft StaffHub, its software tool for firstline workers (which I assume is bundled into this plan).
