The version of Microsoft Office from the Mac App Store is suddenly working with one-time licenses

Software
, , , ,
1

I have the Mac App Store version of Microsoft Office installed on my Mac. It wasn’t activated because my Microsoft 365 subscription ended. Unlike the version of Microsoft Office you can download from Microsoft’s website, the Mac App Store version of Microsoft Office only allows you to activate it using a Microsoft 365 subscription (according to this Microsoft support article).

Last night, I noticed that the entire Microsoft Office suite had suddenly activated itself using a one-time license that I purchased at an earlier point. What caused this to happen? Did Microsoft update the Mac App Store version of Microsoft Office to work with one-time licenses?

For example, here’s Microsoft Word.

964×1222 107 KB

3384×482 77.9 KB

2

Had the VLK previously been deactivated / banned, and all of a sudden it started working again? Or was the VLK still otherwise-valid, but you’d just gone to a subscription?

3

I had applied the volume license key not realizing that it wouldn’t work with the Mac App Store version of Microsoft Office. I didn’t realize that until I had applied it and opened up Microsoft Word. I am very confused as to why it’s working all of a sudden. Again, Microsoft claims that volume license keys don’t work with the Mac App Store version of Microsoft Office.

If it was caused by a bug, I can only hope that Microsoft doesn’t fix it and revoke my activation status! :sweat_smile: