Microsoft Opens Copilot Benefits to Microsoft 365 Family Members, Cuts Shared Storage
Microsoft 365 Family and Premium subscribers will soon be able to share Copilot and other AI features with up to five additional people on their
Microsoft 365 Family and Premium subscribers will soon be able to share Copilot and other AI features with up to five additional people on their plans. The change comes with a steep storage trade-off: a family’s OneDrive allowance will shift from 1TB per person to a shared 2TB pool.
Microsoft is rolling out the changes over the coming months, according to an email to subscribers reviewed by The Verge. Until now, Microsoft had included AI-powered Office features in Personal and Family subscriptions but limited access to the primary account holder.
One allowance for AI and storage
Under the new setup, plan owners can share AI access with other members and manage whether younger family members can use it. Individual limits for AI features will also be replaced by a shared allowance that subscribers can use across advanced features. Microsoft says customers will be able to buy more usage when needed.
The storage change could hit households that rely heavily on OneDrive backups. A six-person plan previously offered up to 6TB in total; the new shared pool provides 2TB for everyone. If several members store large photo and video libraries, they will have to divide the available space or look for more.
There is a different upside for some families. The old per-person cap restricted each member to 1TB, even when others barely used their allotment. With pooled storage, one person can use more than 1TB if space remains. Microsoft says members’ files, folders and mailboxes will remain private; only the storage quota is shared.
More flexibility, but less room
Microsoft describes the subscription changes as giving customers more flexibility over AI and cloud storage. But the lower overall allowance may leave some subscribers with a choice between moving files and paying for additional capacity. The source material says extra storage can be added to the shared pool, up to a 10TB ceiling.
The changes affect Microsoft 365 Family and Premium, while Microsoft’s subscription revisions also cover Personal and other plans. For households that use only a fraction of their current storage, the new arrangement may make little practical difference. For families near the old combined limit, the cut is substantial.
Source: theverge.com
