Fixes to Power BI Pro License Required Dialogs

[Ajay]

A Power BI Pro license is required to view dashboards or reports that contain Pro content. In some cases, our enforcement of this licensing logic caused confusion about whether content was Pro or not.  We are releasing several fixes that make this experience more consistent for users.

Please note that there is no change to our licensing policy - the conditions for what is Pro content, which continue to remain the same.
 
The fixes are as follows:

• Dashboards and reports created in Group Workspaces that were subsequently shared to other users without Pro licenses did not trigger the standard License Required Dialog. Instead there was a  non-standard treatment of this Pro content for viewers without Pro licenses.  We have fixed this issue, so these consumers will now see the standard 'License Required' dialog that is consistent with other Pro content scenarios.

• In some circumstances, users that attempted to view Pro content without a Pro license saw the standard License Required Dialog, but upon closing the dialog saw partial content, causing confusion about whether a license was required.  We have fixed this issue, so these viewers will no longer see any Pro content if they do not have a Pro license.

• In some circumstances, direct links to reports that contained Pro content did show the standard 'License Required' dialog for users without Pro.  We have fixed this issue, so these viewers will see the standard 'License Required' dialog.

Ajay 

[Gabistoica]

This morning, in the Share functionality of the dashboard the Power Bi Pro message appears:

"This dashboard contains Power BI Pro content. Only users that have Power BI Pro will have access to it.Learn more" 

Yesterday it was not there and also there was no changes made to the dashboard/dataset/refreshing options.

The users doesn'e seems to "feel" the consequences yet.

Are you aware of another changes in teh licensing?

Regards,

[djnww]

Hi @Gabistoica,

You are correct. This is very concerning. I am sure it must be a mistake on Microsoft's part. If sharing is suddenly Power BI PRO content, then Power BI is as good as dead.

@Ajay, can you please confirm why, all of a sudden, sharing Power BI dashboards even on my own workspace now requires Power BI PRO ? I can guarantee you that the dashboards do not contain PRO content.

Update: I can confirm that this is indeed an issue. I published a simple report into My Workspace and it cannot be shared.

D

[MagnusJ]

I hade the same experience today. I do not have anything in my reports or dashboards that requires PRO. But PBI-Service still claims that I have PRO-content and that the users that I share with need a PRO-license. I have re-read the licensing setup over and over and can not see that a PRO-license is required. Especially since MS claim that nothing has changed in the licensing setup.

Now even tried to remove everything from service and upload it again (as this is a previous solution for a similar problem), but that does not help. Seems like all sharing is stopped for non-PRO.

But, after checking with a user it seems that sharing still works.

[djnww]

The sharing has stopped for non-Pro. Microsoft informed me that this should not be happening are investigating.

[ElsD]

I just checked and I don't have the PRO-message anymore. Anyone else?

[djnww]

Hi @ElsD,

Are you referring to the 'PRO' message for those sharing from their Personal Workspace ? If this is so then you are correct. The problem was rectified yesterday.

D

[ElsD]

Yes, I did. Thanks for confirming.

[djnww]

FYI to all,
 
Microsoft informed me today that big changes to Power BI's licensing agreement are coming in the next few weeks which will alleviate some of the issues we have surrounding sharing of reports and dashboards that everyone is having.

Don't quote me on this, however he hinted that there will be a distinction between PRO and regular users (ie. viewers). I am assuming regular viewers will be a lot cheaper. I'm hoping the current $10 p/m pp stays and doesn't increase either.
 
D

[worldundermine]

That *sounds* great, but I'm not holding my breath. I'd love to hear from someone who's actually on Product team at Microsoft. This community is great, but we're left completely in the dark in regards to comminications and support from Microsoft itself.

[djnww]

FYI to all, the new PowerBI Licensing has been released. The email sounds scary. I recommend going to the licensing page to get a proper understanding. There is pricing for PRO users and those responsible for sharing VS consumers.

[mim]

sharing for free users is no more, microsoft this is unethical !!! 

[GilbertQ]

You can possibly still access it for free for up to another year

https://community.powerbi.com/t5/Changes-to-the-free-Power-BI/May-3-announcement-overview/m-p/167395

[djnww]

Hi @GilbertQ,

Not if you're already a PRO user. Doesn't make sense.

PRO users are the ones who will be pushing to get Power BI implemented, yet they are not extended. Only FREE users can get PRO licensing for 12 months ? They are end users. They aren't interested in PRO.

[GilbertQ]

Hi @djnww

From your message it appears that you are asking why the Pro users are not getting an extension?

If this is the case they are already paying for the Pro license.

With regards to the content that the Pro users have shared with the Free Users, or if a Free User now wants to share content, they will have to use the Trial offer which is for up to 1 year.

[mim]

@GilbertQMicrosoft used us as a beta testers to their product, this is a despicable commercial tactic, attracting users using free offers, and when PowerBI become a mature product, now it is telling their users, you have 1 year, pay or #$()*&^@#$ 

seriously, how we are supposed to trust Microsoft now, they may change their terms at any time.

at least for me the only sensible solution is using on-premise solution with perpetual license, suddenly Tableau desktop make a lot of sense, or SQL Tabular with Excel as a front End.  

[GilbertQ]

Hi @mim

I can totally understand the fustration as it is a big change. And at the end of the day they are a business so they need to make money.

So whilst I do think that the pricing might not be very attractive to the small to mid size companies, it does make sense to keep it free for Personal use, as you do with a lot of other software out there. And by eliminating the Sharing this ensure that it is always used in a personal capacity.

[mim]

I think it is a reminder of the risk associated with software as a service, you are at the mercy of the vendor.  

[worldundermine]

It's apparent that Microsoft is willing to alienate and abandon its users. There are better and cheaper options out there. Tableau is cheaper and easier to use depending on your organization's situation.

What I think we all *expected* from Power BI was to have fees (make them hefty if you must) for BI developers, but to offer *read only* dashboards to users in the same organization. For instance, Tableau Reader is FREE for users that are NOT modifying data/content. Now everyone has to pay to SHARE content? What is the point of this application otherwise?

I don't need to hear anyone defending Microsoft on this. Sure, it's their company and we are all at the whim of their ever changing services, but to simply disregard a good portion of you community is beyond words. All this does is cause us to NOT use Microsoft for anything in the future.

[Mardin]

@worldundermine I may have misunderstood some parts of the White Paper but it sounds to me that with Power BI Premium you pay for a dedicated server (cloud, on premise or a combination of both) with varying prices depending on your organisation size, and then you only need to buy PRO-Licenses for your Developers while everyone else can read (view-only) the reports without any Pro-License?

Or did I miss something? If this is the case then the pricing scenario is very much like Tableau where you would also need to buy a Tableau server along with your Developer licenses.

[mim]

@Mardin your understanding is correct.