Ask Paul: October 15 (Premium)

It’s the Ides of October, so let’s kick off the weekend---and the spooky season---with a great set of reader questions.
Privacy marketing
erich82 asks:

Microsoft advertises Enhanced Security, as a benefit to subscribing to 365. Are you aware though, if Microsoft also offers enhanced privacy as a feature? Is a subscriber still tracked and monetized in the same way as a person who uses the free version of 365? Aside from not being shown ads in Outlook, I’m questioning what the real benefit is to subscribing, regarding privacy. Maybe those who use Libre Office and keep everything on a USB drive, are on to something.

I’m not aware of anything like that, but I had made the case in the past that Microsoft was missing a nice opportunity to be seen as the Apple of productivity, from a privacy (and marketing) perspective. I was referring mostly to Windows whenever I wrote that (sorry, I can’t even find it now), but it makes even more sense in the scenario you describe. But for Microsoft to truly embrace this role it has to actually make substantive changes to whether, how, and where it collects user data, and give its customers a proactive chance to opt-out of that.

Whether we’re talking about just Windows or Microsoft 365 more broadly, I’ve never understood not giving users the chance to opt-out, since few would anyway, but it would give the firm such a positive aura. It’s a win-win. But yeah, nothing. In fact, things have gotten even worse with Windows 11, arguably. The Widgets interface alone is a one-two-three punch of pushing users to Edge, MSN, and Bing, even if they’ve made other choices for themselves. That’s unnecessarily shady.
Never the twain shall meet
ericmeetsworld asks:

I'm also wondering why there isn't a package deal with Office 365 and Xbox Game Pass. I know they had one in the past. Kind of like the Apple One.

Yeah, I had to look this up since it’s been so long, but you’re thinking of the Work & Play bundle, which was a sort of limited-time offer via the Microsoft Store. I think the first version dates back to 2013 or 2014, but since this site has only been around since 2015, the oldest article I could find out it is here, back when Microsoft 365 was called Office 365 and Xbox Music Pass still existed.

Anyway, I agree. When Google announces the Pixel 6 family of smartphones next week, it will also introduce an Apple One-like subscription service, according to rumors. And yes, Microsoft should too. Microsoft 365 and Xbox both target consumers, after all, and any kind of savings could help push people to adopt a service that they’re not currently using.

On a semi-related note, it’s unclear to me how or why I can run out of storage space for Xbox-based screenshots and video recordings when I am paying for over 5 TB of OneDrive storage via by Microsoft 365 Family account. Those things need to be integrated under the covers as well.
Outlook stability and reliability
cwfinn ask...

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