Microsoft Office 365 E5

On December 1, 2015 Microsoft issued the new, bonus plan of Office 365 for corporate users - Office 365 E5. The company calls its release "the most large-scale" updating in the history of a cloud service. New opportunities appeared regarding communications and joint work with documents, in also analytics and security.

Before change in Office 365, mainly, concerned transfer and optimization for work in a cloud of already existing server solutions of Microsoft, such as SharePoint, Exchange, Lync and others, the general manager on solutions of Microsoft for performance improvement of work and business performance Eron Kelly noted in a conversation with TAdviser. The present release contains the whole feature set which are not in locally set solutions and which were initially created for use in a cloud, he why in Microsoft consider the last release of corporate Office 365 the most large-scale explains.

Herron Kelly told TAdviser that Office 365 E5 contains feature set which are not in locally set solutions and which were initially created for use in a cloud

New communication opportunities of Office 365 are implemented in Skype for Business with which the cloud office Microsoft is integrated. Their relevance in corporation is explained with the fact that work of employees purchases command character and efficiency more and more more and more now depends on efficiency of communications between them.

One of such functions – Cloud PBX (cloud corporate automatic telephone exchange) – allows to transfer all loading on processing of corporate calls (deduction, redirection of a call, etc.) to a cloud, having saved at the same time local connection to a public telephone network in the territory of the organization. Also there were PSTN Conferencing functions, allowing to be connected to cloud conferences in Skype for Business from normal stationary phone and PSTN Calling which allows to perform calls on landline phone numbers from Office 365.

One more new feature of Skype for Business – Meeting Broadcast (broadcasting conferences) - allows to organize the big virtual meetings covering audience to 10 thousand human. Listeners can join broadcasting via the web browser.

According to the Russian representative office of Microsoft, in Russia not all specified functions will be available. So, the companies will be able to use the Cloud PBX and Meeting Broadcast functions, and PSTN Conferencing and PSTN Calling will be unavailable. The company told TAdviser that cannot sound any terms concerning plans of start of unavailable services in Russia, but "actively work on as much as possible to expand availability geography".

Representatives of Microsoft added that in connection with limited geographical availability of services, in Russia within Office 365 there will be a special tariff plan in which unavailable services are already excluded.

As for an analytical part, Power BI - service of a business intelligence for shared access is a part of a subscription now. To use Power BI in other plans of a subscription to corporate Office 365, it is necessary to pay it separately.

One more new analytical application which appeared in Office 365 – Delve. It is the self-training system capable to distinguish interrelations between people, data and the performed work in Office 365 and on the basis of data retrieveds to personalize content of the user during the work at cloud office.

In the Office 365 E5 office suite there is also an eDiscovery tool using technology of computerized analysis of the text. His initial developer is the Israeli company Equivio which acquisition Microsoft announced in January, 2015. eDiscovery is able to process data bulks, including e-mail, text messages, documents and to take files most of which correspond to the user's request.

Regarding data security one of key innovations in Office 365 - the special data warehouse of Lockbox. It gives to the user the chance most to permit or prohibit specialists of Microsoft to get access to confidential data if, for example, there is a problem with the Exchange server processing corporate mail.

One more function – own means of Microsoft for protection of e-mail Advanced Threat Protection. It checks security of the mail investments and links which are contained in letters of the corporate user.

The global cost of a subscription to Office 365 E5 is $35 a month for one user, reported TAdviser in Microsoft. For comparison, the cost of the baseline plan of corporate Office 365 E1 - $8 a month for one user, and the following plan behind it with broader functionality of Office 365 E3 - $20.

Concerning the prices in Russia at local office Microsoft told TAdviser that the corporation has the price list fixed in rubles on all products here. The prices can vary depending on a method of acquisition of licenses (directly, through partners, the corporate contract). On the official sites of Microsoft in Russia there is no information on the cost of Office 365 E5 at the time of its announcement. The Russian representative office of Microsoft says that this plan will be available in the nearest future.