Microsoft’s next major release of Office is almost here and it is a great time to talk about a new licensing model you will be offered as a subscription. Sure they have tried it in the past but it had always been a badly designed unattractive offering that no one really bought. Microsoft hopes Office 2013 will change that.

Microsoft’s Office 2013 subscription will allow you to install the product on multiple devices (Windows, Mac and mobile) and you will be able to easily transfer a license from one device to another. This means that a family with multiple computers in the house will be able to legally use the same license.

This wonderful new Home Premium license will cost $99.99 a year. Since multiple users in the same house can share the license, it means each person will be able to log in using their own Microsoft account (no need to share account passwords) and benefit from the tied in online services (storage of files on Skydrive, settings sync, etc). The subscription comes with 5 device licenses and you can easily reassign a license from one device to another without having to call a helpdesk.

Plus because it is a subscription model, you will get all of the updates and version upgrades automatically. The other major benefit is the click-to-run feature which makes the app available within minutes (no long complicated installation process). The primary account holder (the one that buys the subscription) gets a 20GB storage bonus on Skydrive (bringing his/her total online storage limit to 27GB). Microsoft is offering the primary account holder 60 minutes of free Skype worldwide calling. And last but not least, you will get Office on Demand which will allow you to use any Office product on any internet connected PC without installation (using Microsoft’s app streaming technologies).

Obviously there are lots user benefits to this new subscription model. Microsoft, on the other hand, gets a steady income stream (instead of a lump sum user purchase every 3-5 years).