Microsoft is continuing to seek to undo the negative perception many customers share about its Software Assurance subscription-licensing program.

On September 15, the company is set to unveil via Webcast the latest bunch of new benefits designed to entice more customers to sign up for Software Assurance.

Among the enhancements set to be unveiled are new offerings covering Windows Vista, Windows 'Eiger' and Virtual PC Express, according to an updated benefits-entitlement chart viewed by Microsoft Watch.

Other additions to the program will include additional 24X7 problem resolution support and extended hotfix support.

Software Assurance, rolled out in late 2002, is one of Microsoft's many volume-software licensing programs. The program was Microsoft's first major foray into annuity-based licensing. Under the plan, customers are charged a percentage (roughly 30 percent per year over three years) of the total cost of their desktop and/or server wares. In exchange, they "buy" guaranteed maintenance on their software and are supplied with service packs and new releases, as they become available.

Months before Microsoft's Software Assurance policies went into effect, customers were grumbling about the terms and conditions that Microsoft was set to impose. A number of customers and market watchers warned the program would result in a number of users paying more for their products.

Since the initial rollout, Microsoft has regularly added new benefits and concessions designed to attract new Software Assurance licensees into the fold.

Microsoft officials declined to discuss the pending Software Assurance announcements, other than to confirm they will explain the new benefits to users on September 15.

Microsoft divides its volume-licensing benefits into buckets. These buckets, which parallel the company's software lifecycle stages, are: plan, deploy, use, maintain and "transition."

On the "deployment" front, Microsoft is adding new benefits around desktop-deployment planning for Software Assurance licensees. By spending between $60,000 on Microsoft Office applications under Software Assurance, users will receive one free day of service. For $300,000 in spending, users receive three free days of service. At the $1.25 million level, users receive up to 10 days, according to the revised benefits chart.

In the "use" bucket, Microsoft is adding more training vouchers for Office and Windows. The company also is adding new Vista Enterprise and Virtual PC Express benefits. On the Vista Enterprise front, for every Windows client license covered under Software Assurance, users will be entitled o one Windows Vista upgrade license. Users also will be entitled to one Virtual PC Express license for each Windows client license they purchase.

In the "maintenance" bucket, Software Assurance users will receive enhanced 24X7 problem-resolution support.

It's on the "transition" front where Microsoft will be making its most visible enhancements, according to the benefits chart.

The company will add a new Windows Eiger benefit, via which Software Assurance licenses will be entitled to install one copy of "Eiger" as the Windows client license for every Windows client licensed covered under the program.

Eiger is a stripped-down version of Windows XP Professional. It is designed for customers who want more security and manageability, but who aren't ready or able to upgrade to Windows XP, according to Microsoft officials. It is not a thin client in the traditional sense. Instead, Microsoft will offer it as an interim, "bridge" solution for enterprise users who ultimately plan to move to XP or Windows Vista, officials have said.

Microsoft also is enhancing its Extended Hotfix support as part of its new Software Assurance benefits. Software Assurance licensees won't require a 90-day enrollment in order to sign up for extended hotfixes, which Microsoft will deliver for Windows client and Office Professional releases, even after their regular support period has ended. On the server front, the 90-day enrollment requirement also will be waived for Software Assurance customers. The annual Software Assurance contract fee will cover Exchange, Microsoft Operations Manager, Systems Management Server, SQL Server and Windows Server extended hotfixes.

Directions on Microsoft analyst Paul DeGroot said it's in the area of technical support where Microsoft has the biggest chance to make changes that will "at least loosen your socks, if not knock them off."

"Of course, SA (Software Assurance) still has lots of flaws," DeGroot cautioned. "It's a three-year upgrade program in the age of five-year major refresh cycles. You commit money in advance for upgrades and Microsoft makes absolutely no commitment to deliver them, etc. So it will be interesting to see whether they address any of those critical issues."