It's not entirely impossible that many on-premises sales are actually, or are predicted to become, a net negative compared to a similar cloud solution. Based on these policy changes, one can argue that it's not only possible, but likely that on-premises is becoming a net negative.
My interpretation, or at least one of them, is that Microsoft want to start pushing the smaller accounts entirely to the cloud by starving that channel while also gaining the option of engaging with more of the largest customers directly. The latter will only be possible once most of the MPN members prone to open critique towards MPN policies have left the program. It also seems to fit nicely into the "open source" narrative with it's implicit, or explicit focus on charging for various services rather than the software itself.
My interpretation, or at least one of them, is that Microsoft want to start pushing the smaller accounts entirely to the cloud by starving that channel while also gaining the option of engaging with more of the largest customers directly. The latter will only be possible once most of the MPN members prone to open critique towards MPN policies have left the program. It also seems to fit nicely into the "open source" narrative with it's implicit, or explicit focus on charging for various services rather than the software itself.