Expand your catalog with thousands of solutions from Microsoft AppSource
This article explains how ActivePlatform helps CSP Partners sell ISV solutions in addition to Microsoft products and unlock the advantages of private offers and consolidated billing within a single integration in the platform.
What is Microsoft AppSource?
Microsoft AppSource is one of the public Microsoft online storefronts with more than 30,000 ISV business solutions, such as SaaS applications and apps for Dynamics 365, Microsoft 365, and Microsoft Power Platform. Microsoft actively promotes it and attracts big ISVs like Zoho. As a CSP Partner, you can instantly start reselling thousands of business apps with Microsoft products via ActivePlatform. The only thing you need to begin is to get your private offer from an ISV.
What is a private offer?
A private offer is the key aspect of Microsoft AppSource. It allows a CSP Partner to agree with an ISV on an individual margin. ActivePlatform, with its complex automatization, multi-currency, and localization support, can help you to get in touch with ISVs in different regions, get flexible private offers, and receive more significant margins on ISV solutions.
How does integration with Microsoft AppSource work?
ActivePlatform offers a single integration with the Microsoft CSP program and Microsoft AppSource, fully automated provisioning, and consolidated billing across all the customer's subscriptions. As a CSP partner, you can focus on growing your business by establishing new relationships with ISVs.
ActivePlatform collects all available products from AppSource according to your region and lets you manage their pricing like any other product. Your customers, in their turn, get the ability to meet all their demands within the same streamlined experience:
Microsoft AppSource integration works perfectly with indirect providers and direct bill partners. The following diagrams explain the CSP billing models of Microsoft AppSource and ActivePlatform for both cases.
ActivePlatform collects all available products from AppSource according to your region and lets you manage their pricing like any other product. Your customers, in their turn, get the ability to meet all their demands within the same streamlined experience:
- A vast catalog of products where they can purchase both ISV, Microsoft, and non-Microsoft software.
- A self-service portal where they can manage subscriptions and analyze their costs. Every app from AppSource is a standard subscription in ActivePlatform.
- Single invoices for their subscriptions. ActivePlatform issues your branded invoice in your selected currency with all subscriptions of a customer.
- Various payment methods: worldwide secure online payments, bank transfers, or paying directly from their balance in the platform.
Microsoft AppSource integration works perfectly with indirect providers and direct bill partners. The following diagrams explain the CSP billing models of Microsoft AppSource and ActivePlatform for both cases.
The flow starts with a private offer from an ISV to you as a CSP partner. AppSource has a dedicated UI for an ISV to create a private offer with a certain margin for a CSP partner. Generally, it can be a different margin % per CSP partner or the same margin % for multiple CSP partners. In the example, the margin is 20%: $100 down to $80.
After an ISV publishes the offer in AppSource, you can fetch the ISV product and configure the corresponding product and its plan in ActivePlatform. In the example, the plan costs a customer $90. You will have a nice-looking product in your ActivePlatform catalog, with a marketing description, screenshots, videos, and a link to buy it from you.
A customer finds the offering in your catalog and purchases it via the Customer Control Panel. Here ActivePlatform charges a customer $90. The customer pays with one of the available payment methods.
On the billing day, Microsoft charges you as a CSP partner $80, as agreed with the ISV, and keeps a small fee for the services. The remaining amount goes to the ISV and completes the flow.
After an ISV publishes the offer in AppSource, you can fetch the ISV product and configure the corresponding product and its plan in ActivePlatform. In the example, the plan costs a customer $90. You will have a nice-looking product in your ActivePlatform catalog, with a marketing description, screenshots, videos, and a link to buy it from you.
A customer finds the offering in your catalog and purchases it via the Customer Control Panel. Here ActivePlatform charges a customer $90. The customer pays with one of the available payment methods.
On the billing day, Microsoft charges you as a CSP partner $80, as agreed with the ISV, and keeps a small fee for the services. The remaining amount goes to the ISV and completes the flow.
What is the difference between AppSource and Marketplace?
There is a difference between AppSource and Marketplace. Azure Marketplace is another public Microsoft online storefront. Unlike AppSource, Azure Marketplace specializes in solutions for Azure and is intended for IT professionals and developers.
All customers, who purchased an Azure subscription from a reseller in ActivePlatform, automatically get access to Azure Marketplace. There they can buy available solutions on their own — the purchased items will appear in ActivePlatform and be billed as "third-party resources" of the corresponding Azure subscription.
In other words, ActivePlatform is integrated with Azure Marketplace too, but the integration requires nothing from a reseller: everything works from the box.
All customers, who purchased an Azure subscription from a reseller in ActivePlatform, automatically get access to Azure Marketplace. There they can buy available solutions on their own — the purchased items will appear in ActivePlatform and be billed as "third-party resources" of the corresponding Azure subscription.
In other words, ActivePlatform is integrated with Azure Marketplace too, but the integration requires nothing from a reseller: everything works from the box.
About ActivePlatform
ActivePlatform is a full-service automated cloud brokering solution for cloud service providers and internal IT hubs that makes it easier to manage and control the cloud delivery and profitability. ActivePlatform unites vendors, providers, developers, and resellers into a single ecosystem for buying, selling, and managing cloud services. With its open vendor integration framework, ActivePlatform creates a vibrant catalog of cloud services ultimately helping businesses gain access to the services they need to thrive.
ActivePlatform enables SaaS, PaaS, IaaS aggregation, delivery, and monetization, provides simplified administration through central management, and enables critical visibility into resellers and cloud services consumption and usage. The platform has implementations with distributors, cloud solution providers, and telecom operators. ActivePlatform is headquartered in Europe.
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