Change in price for Google Apps for Business

More pricing changes announced, this time by Google, as they announced that Google Apps, a direct competitor to Microsoft Office 365, will start charging to new businesses with under 10 users.

Google Apps will cost $50 per user, per year (£33 in the UK), the same price for all businesses, rather than the two versions for businesses – a free version for small companies with less than 10 users, and a premium version for larger businesses. Now there are two versions of Google Apps, one for consumers and one for businesses.

Arguably, Google Apps being free to smaller businesses was its biggest challenge to Microsoft Office 365, which still has around a market share of 90%, according to analysts.

With this price alteration, it will be interesting to see how this price change affects the value proposition of the two competitors, and if Google Apps can mount a significant challenge in the SMB space.