Inspire 2022: Cloud programs, benefits lead Microsoft's message to partners

Microsoft has 400,000 partners employing 22 million people, and at the company's annual Inspire event this week, leaders plan to focus on the opoprtunities for those ISVs, VARs, and other providers  and their respective goals around growth, modernization, migration, platform security, and hybrid work.

Anticipating that the cloud services market will be worth $1 trillion by 2025, Microsoft is rolling out the ISV Success Program in private preview—with general availability in the fall—as a “pathway to ISV success in the Microsoft Cloud Partner Program.” ISVs will gain access to new cloud sandboxes, developer tools, and up to $128,000 of benefits.

Microsoft has updated its commercial marketplace to support margin sharing and teamed up with Tackle.io to support scalability for partners. “These new benefits, alongside Microsoft’s industry-leading 3% marketplace transaction fees, allow ISVs to build, sell and thrive on the Microsoft Cloud,” stated Frank X. Shaw, corporate vice president of Microsoft communications.

In the months to come, Microsoft will introduce new industry designations for ISVs with the goal of differentiating solutions.

For partners focused on governments and major enterprises, Microsoft announced Cloud for Sovereignty for governments. The offering is intended to allow governments to move to the cloud while maintaining security and data residency controls. Simultaneously, Microsoft announced a new Azure Space Partner Program to support future space computing initiatives.