Microsoft is moving parts of its AI portfolio beyond pure per-seat pricing by pairing user licenses with charges tied to usage. The hybrid model keeps recurring seat fees in place while adding a variable billing unit as customers consume more AI capacity.

That model is beginning to show up in Microsoft’s financial results. Dynamics 365 Customer Service credit consumption rose fourfold quarter over quarter, while GitHub Copilot generated what Microsoft called “significant consumption revenue” after its June billing change.

Microsoft also reported more than 30 million paid Microsoft 365 Copilot seats, with net additions more than doubling from the previous quarter, and said GitHub continued adding Business and Enterprise seats.

Software giant VMware is suing an Italian distributor for around €30 million in damages, claiming in a London court that the company failed to ensure a customer agreed to delete old software licenses during an upgrade plan.

VMware said Computer Gross should have required Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo to agree to VMware’s licensing terms when it sold the bank VMware’s cloud computing software, according to a newly public High Court claim.

Computer Gross had previously bought the rights to resell the software, the claim says.

VMware said that under its terms, Computer Gross was required to ensure that Intesa deleted its old software licenses once it had the updated versions. But Computer Gross failed to do so, and Intesa confirmed that it never agreed to those terms, according to the claim.

VMware said that it gave Computer Gross an 82% discount on the standard resale agreement, based on the expectation that Intesa would retire its existing perpetual licenses, according to the filing.

The list price of the software was €36 million, but Computer Gross paid only €6.6 million, resulting in a discount worth €29.4 million, the claim says.

VMware said Computer Gross should have prevented the license duplication. By not doing so, Computer Gross essentially sold the software at a heavily discounted price.

As well as damages for the allegedly unauthorised price cut, VMware is seeking an order to prevent Computer Gross from continuing separate civil proceedings in Milan, the claim says.

Computer Gross breached a jurisdiction clause in its contract with VMware when it asked the Italian court to confirm that it did not owe VMware compensation over the software deal, according to the claim.

Allstate Insurance Company has accused Broadcom of haphazardly issuing audits against it because the insurance firm decided not to renew its contracts with VMware and CA Technologies.

The allegations were made in relation to a lawsuit that VMware filed against Allstate in December 2025, according to The Register. In the complaint, Broadcom alleges that Allstate failed to comply with license audits, which Broadcom claims its contract with Allstate requires.

In a June 12 filing, Allstate suggested that Broadcom issued the audits in response to Allstate deciding to end business with its companies. Allstate’s statement reads:

After 5+ years of Flexera’s State of ITAM report, one thing’s clear: there’s no shortage of daily challenges faced by ITAM teams. Business units now buy applications directly. Teams experiment with unsanctioned AI tools. Free trials turn into paid subscriptions. All while overlapping apps stack up across departments. All of this rolls up under SaaS sprawl.

SaaS sprawl isn’t about having too many tools. It’s about losing control over:

Software audits aren’t new; nearly half (48%) of the organisations surveyed in Flexera’s 2026 State of ITAM Report said they had been audited in the last year. But they are becoming more frequent, more complex and more expensive. They’ve become a constant reality for IT leaders who are constantly asking themselves:

How do I reduce software audit risk while maintaining control across SaaS, cloud and AI?

The answer sits with governance, visibility and proactive ITAM practices.

Workers are struggling to understand how to best use AI tools for their daily tasks due to a widening disconnect between employers and their employees, new research has claimed.

A new study from Mitel found that AI tools are often misaligned with how employees actually work, leading to widespread frustration.

This is leading many workers to bring in their own familiar tools from outside of work, potentially opening up their organisation to security threats and other risks.

The study found 71% of workers admitting to have used non-approved communication tools for work-related purposes, increasing the risk of the likes of data exposure, compliance breaches, cybersecurity threats, and a loss of visibility and control.

A similar proportion (71%) said they felt pressured to just “make it work” with tools not designed for their needs, showing the apparent disconnect or disinterest from senior management.

Overall, while just over half (51%) of workers said they regularly use AI tools, only 37% reported feeling very comfortable using them in their day-to-day work – with 70% saying they felt their organisation does not adequately support AI use.

“Organisations are making significant investments in AI, communication infrastructure, and modernisation,” said Eric Hanson, CMO at Mitel. “Yet more than half of employees report that these tools fall short at the moments that matter most.

“The challenge is not a lack of technology, but a lack of alignment with the realities of work. In fast-moving, high-pressure, and increasingly mobile environments, communication must be immediate, reliable and context-appropriate — or it risks breaking down precisely when it is needed most.”

“Closing the experience gap is now essential to reclaiming control and ensuring that communication investments translate into real-world performance and impact.”