Reaction in the charity sector to the changes to Microsoft's
licensing policy has been largely one of confusion as users
struggle to fathom what the implications are for the not-for-profit
sector.
Different software purchasing agreements for the sector will
compound confusion over the new licensing terms, as charities
struggle to draw together software budgets for the next three
years.
Organisations in the charity sector receive subsidised licensing
but there are mounting fears that that any move to
subscription-based licensing could drive up costs and wipe out
these benefits.
Ajay Burlingham-Bîhr, head of information systems at the Royal
Society for the Protection of Birds and chairman of the Charities
Consortium IT Directors' Forum, said it was not clear what the
changes would mean for the sector as a whole but that a number of
charities were looking at the issues as a group.
"It certainly gives me cause for concern, but, at the moment, we
don't know the extent to which this will affect us. We have a
Microsoft Select agreement but [with a different set of purchasing
agreements for the charity sector] it is even more complicated for
us," she said.
Rob Jinman, head of IT at the Zoological Society of London, agreed
that the proposed changes are confusing and said supplier
explanations have been "very vague".
He added that the society would not be able to afford the cost of
training and hardware upgrades if it is forced to upgrade to
Windows 2000. "It is pretty much a brick wall. Microsoft has no
reason to listen to us. It has got us in a headlock," he said.