I don't care about Office, I don't care about AI. I just want to keep my Skydrive...
I had forgotten that people are seriously paying for office software in 2025.
There are a few features in 365 that are not built into opens source options, most them are accessibility feature.
FOSS really does need to up its game when it comes to accessibility features. I feel like there's a culture issue. People need to be focusing on those features right from the start, but it's not even an afterthought. You'll get 5+ different iterations of basically the same program and not a one will have any accessibility features that aren't already built into the platforms that they're using, because everyone wants to do the "shiny" stuff.
I'd really like to see a foundation set up specifically for accessibility in FOSS. Hopefully taking grants, hiring full time devs and dedicating to coding and maintaining those features for a specific subset of projects.
Cancel anyway and just use LibreOffice or OnlyOffice...
I struggle with Linux- though I still use it on my Internet machine... But libre office isn't any more difficult that MS office. Also you don't get ransomed for money on a very simple product. I don't understand why people pay for this bullshit.
I've used LibreOffice (or OpenOffice as it was known before), and a problem with this approach is that your family will still constantly ask you to install Office and crack it for them. And those who don't know any better will ask your help to open the PowerPoint their friends keep sending them.
Not to mention that LibreOffice doesn't have an easy to integrate backup solution, nor an easy way to share big photo folders, let alone a decent mail client.
LibreOffice is a good thing at what it wants to be. But it's not comparable to what MS is offering in the form of a subscription though. You don't just switch and only replace the word and excel alternative...
99% of home users would do just fine even with Wordpad. But everyone was hooked on MS Office. Even myself. But I was just annoyed chasing new versions and looking for cracks for them. That was years ago when I migrated to EasyOffice which was free alternative. Then came OpenOffice and LibreOffice. Now I'm using OpenOffice because it's less bloated than LibreOffice and just has 3 basic tools, Writer, Spreadsheets and Presentation and that's that. LibreOffice installs bunch of stuff I don't need and there is no way to adjust that during install.
this would make me cancel anyways. I've already put the effort in, you've already tried to trick me, fuck you
Amazon did the same thing with Prime, changed everyone to an ad-infested plan for the same price and created a new, ad-free tier for a higher price, and claims this change isn't a price increase.
Spotify did the same thing when they raised everyone's prices but started bundling audiobooks with music, but left behind the old, audio-book free plan for the old price without telling anyone.
I don't feel bad for pirating as long as the middlemen of media continue to pull underhanded tactics like this.
I had heard that amazon was planning on moving to an ad supported thing but I never ever saw an ad, either my pihole system blocked the ads or the ads came after January.
It gets better. I went to cancel, got the old price (and confirmed it) and they still gave me CoPilot.
They really need your data.
That's actually worse, lol~
Sounds like deceptive business practices to me
Yeah it's weird and depressing how this is even legal. It's one thing to have to increase your prices, but what they seem to be doing here is automatically upgrading your subscription to something other than what you signed up for, when the original thing is still available as an option.
You wouldn't tolerate it in any other industry, but big tech moves so much faster than legislators, that they get to establish newer and shittier norms way before the geriatrics in government figure out what they're even looking at.
They think AI is a desirable thing that consumers want, that's why they charge more for the one with it.
I'm pretty sure they're aware that no one cares, but also that they think they can make us dependent on it if they cram it down our throats enough.
I also think that the bubble will burst when investors realize that it's never gonna happen.
While studies say that consumers buy less if the product advertises AI. But whatever the evidence says, because capitalism raised a bunch of psychopaths to the top.
I do this with Internet/cable companies. Whenever I move I get the promotional price for a year. Then after a year I call them up and complain about the price increase and they extend the promotion. I've done that every year for the past 15 years.
I tried it and they didn't care. So I cancelled switched providers until their promotion ran out then switched back.
I think the Sales executives want this. They get bonuses for new customers. If no one switched they wouldn't get their bonus. So as long as the competitors are getting customers to leave, they try to get their own customers to leave too.
I got the same email, and the same offer. Canceled anyway, because fuck them, that's why.
I just canceled it entirely when they started the AI charges. I've not missed it for a minute.
This is why we all need to start self hosting open source office things. I realize that is hard for people but if you want the cloud stuff of 365 that needs to happen, if you do not need the cloud stuff than just get libreoffice.
Haha I had the exact same. Only discovered the extra charge was only for AI I don't want when I tried to stop regular payments.
They're trying to see how much customers will bear, and don't want to lose them if they won't. It's shitty price discovery enabled by technology.
They back off for now.
It's been a while since I got that mail, and made sure I have the none AI version, but isn't it mentioned in the mail itself? Or in a link from the mail?
