Removal of Copilot Chat Availability in M365 Apps?!?

The frustration from larger companies is completely valid IMHO. 

Especially for those companies that have already invested heavily in user adoption and change management like grant_jenkins​ pointed out.

Keeping in mind that I'm a long-time Microsoft MVP but Not a Microsoft employee, here's what I know:

The two message center posts about this change: MC1253858 vs. MC1253863

What's leaving

The integrated Copilot Chat pane directly inside the desktop and web applications of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.

What's staying

Access to standard Copilot Chat through Microsoft 365 Chat as well as the chat pane within Microsoft Teams. But as JukkaNiiranen​ pointed out, through Teams you can just get to the existing M365 Chat but will not have access to any premium Copilot Teams features.

I think the most concerning part of this rollout is that it's going to affect the enterprise tenants the most. If you've already done a lot of user education towards how to use the free Copilot within Office apps, now you have to tell those users that they don't have access to that functionality anymore. That does really suck and makes you wonder what else is going to change in the future and what you should invest in and not invest in.

My opinion is that this is a commercial lever to drive premium licensing of Copilot because Microsoft knows that the costs are going to get out of hand if they continue to allow big organizations to have this functionality for free within the Office apps.

My advice would be to urgently update your internal FAQs and adoption materials or, if you have a digital adoption platform, make sure that the in-app guidance lets people know that things will change on April 15th so you don't have a flood of help desk tickets.