Ist das MCA-E das Ende des Microsoft Enterprise Agreement (EA)?

The Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) is a simplified, digital, and perpetual contract for purchasing Microsoft cloud products and services.
Microsoft's vision is to gradually replace older and more cumbersome agreements with the MCA. What does this mean for customers?

The current MCA was introduced in 2019 as a replacement for the Microsoft Cloud Agreement. Since then, the MCA has become increasingly important. Azure services were migrated to the MCA in 2021, even for EA customers, and new features and purchase options have been added gradually.

Starting in 2025, there will be a gradual migration from EA to MCA. Every six months, additional features will be added to make the transition easier and more attractive for customers. However, EA renewals will no longer be possible for customers with low volumes starting in early 2025.

When switching to MCA, customers generally have a choice between three sales channels:

While the scope of online services offered by EA and MCA is similar, the term of the contract differs. With EA, the term of the subscriptions is co-terminated with the term of the EA contract, while with MCA, customers can choose an individual subscription term of either monthly, annually, or 3 years with the option of co-terminating them.

There are also differences in Azure services. Azure services in EA are only available to existing customers and as PAYG (pay-as-you-go). Microsoft's preferred option is to purchase Azure services through MCA-E, including a Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC).

However, EA is still the leader in on-premises licenses, including the option of Software Assurance (SA), while MCA-E only offers on-premises licenses without SA.

Significant discrepancies in the contract terms include the limited contract term of the EA compared to the unlimited Evergreen contract with the MCA. This is also associated with the lack of price protection over a longer period with the MCA-E and no classic contract renewal dates. However, there are also no minimum quantities or volumes with the MCA-E, making it suitable for companies of all sizes.

In terms of its product portfolio, MCA-E still focuses on Azure and online services, with plans to gradually expand its offering every six months. For example, Exchange Server SE was added to the MCA-E offering in July 2025.

Caution should be exercised with regard to MCA-E prices. In principle, the list prices without discount scales apply to MCA-E, but these will also be discontinued for EA & MPSA for online services from 11/2025. As with EA, prices for high purchase volumes are negotiated directly with Microsoft. However, these are only valid for the term of the respective subscription or MACC commitment and not for the entire contract. This means that prices must be negotiated individually for the various subscriptions at the end of each term (monthly, annually, or three-yearly for MACC).

In addition, Microsoft reserves the right under the standard contract to request a compliance report at any time within 30 days. In the case of sublicensing the prices for additional purchases should then be 125% of the current price. There is no regular license audit and associated transparency regarding license requirements as part of the True Up in EA with MCA-E.

Even though it will no longer be possible for customers with lower volumes to conclude an EA from the beginning of 2025, the MCA-E offering, particularly in the on-premises area, does not yet match the scope of the EA and does not represent a real alternative for large customers. Even Microsoft representatives are currently unable to provide any meaningful information about the exact roadmap for the MCA-E. The enhancements are made every six months, but without any advance notice of which features and offerings will be added.

Larger customers are therefore not yet being pressured to switch to MCA-E when their EA contract expires, but can renew their EA and cover only Azure services via MCA-E. It remains to be seen how long this will continue to be the case.

Our recommendation: Keep a close eye on developments in the MCA-E so that you are as well prepared as possible for your next contract renewal and can work out potential courses of action. We are happy to answer any further questions you may have on this topic.