News

Software licensing

May 05, 2006 05 May'06
Sun offers Linux easier Java licensing terms

Sun Microsystems is to alter its licensing arrangements to make it easier to bundle the Java Runtime Environment with Linux, to promote the use of Java applications in open source environments.
April 28, 2006 28 Apr'06
Government saves £45m on Oracle deal

The government has renegotiated its bulk software licensing deal with Oracle to save the public sector £45m.
April 11, 2006 11 Apr'06
Telco reuses MS licences

Vodafone reseller Yes Telecom has become one of the first UK companies to take advantage of second-hand Microsoft licences.
March 21, 2006 21 Mar'06
Sun makes new chip design open-source

Sun is releasing the design of its new UltraSparc T1 "Niagara" processor under an open-source licence, to encourage further development of the high-productivity chip design in the developer community.

March 21, 2006 21 Mar'06
Oracle posts 42% profit increase

Oracle has posted a 42% increase in net profits for the third quarter, on the back of improved software licensing revenue.
March 21, 2006 21 Mar'06
Next phase of MS Software Assurance launched

Microsoft has unveiled the next generation of its Software Assurance licensing programme, bringing a range of features to simplify Windows software support.
March 14, 2006 14 Mar'06
New business model justifies cost of Epos replacement at Threshers

Off licence chain Threshers is replacing its electronic point of sale systems following a change in business strategy at the beginning of the year saw it begin to transfer stores to a franchise model.
February 06, 2006 06 Feb'06
MS licensing changes get a mixed response

IT directors groups have hailed Microsoft's revamped Software Assurance licensing scheme as a step in the right direction, but they gave a mixed response to some parts of the package, which will be launched next month.
January 31, 2006 31 Jan'06
Novell offers users more licence choice

Netware supplier Novell is changing its main channel corporate licensing model to provide additional options for users of its software.
January 23, 2006 23 Jan'06
Novell changes software licensing model

Novell is changing its main channel corporate licensing model to give customers a different buying option.

January 23, 2006 23 Jan'06
Microsoft bolsters Software Assurance scheme

Microsoft will soon be implementing a number of improvements in its Software Assurance scheme for businesses, to enable them to get more value out of the licensing package.
January 10, 2006 10 Jan'06
Oracle cuts licensing costs for multicore systems but draws flak over complexity

Oracle has changed the way it licenses its software on multicore systems. Many multicore users will now pay less but analyst group Ovum warned that it further complicates Oracle's licensing scheme.
December 16, 2005 16 Dec'05
Oracle profits slump but new licences up

Oracle has posted a drop in its second quarter net profits but it says new licence revenues are up.
November 28, 2005 28 Nov'05
Windows Server 2003 R2 boosts back-up

Microsoft will next week bring out the first interim release of its Windows Server operating system, a product which aims to improve the value of its Software Assurance licence scheme.
November 25, 2005 25 Nov'05
BASF offers SAP HR as a service

BASF IT Services has signed a five-year partnership deal with SAP that will allow it to offer SAP software licences as part of a complete human resources services package.
November 15, 2005 15 Nov'05
Microsoft unveils pricing tool for volume licensing

Microsoft has released the Microsoft Product Licensing Advisor to help users get the best deals through its volume license programmes.
November 14, 2005 14 Nov'05
Don't rush in to usage licensing, users warned

Users should not rush into adopting the utility-based computing model being proposed by suppliers, delegates at last week's Gartner Symposium were warned by analyst Rakesh Kumar.
November 11, 2005 11 Nov'05
Reseller sells second-hand Microsoft licences

A software dealer is re-selling cut-price Microsoft software licences from insolvent companies or from firms that don’t need the licences anymore at up to half the price of new software.
October 31, 2005 31 Oct'05
Jini goes open source

Sun Microsystems is releasing its Jini developer toolkit under an Apache open source licence.
October 18, 2005 18 Oct'05
Firms to test open source Flash tools

Macromedia has released an early version of one of its next-generation development tools for building applications based on its latest Flash Player 8.5 software and launched a tiered licensing scheme.
October 18, 2005 18 Oct'05
Get ready for new Microsoft licensing models

Microsoft is making radical changes to its software pricing that aims to cut costs for customers and force other vendors to dump their own licensing models.
October 17, 2005 17 Oct'05
Microsoft simplifies licensing

Microsoft is simplifying its Windows Server System licensing in a move it said would make it cheaper for users to adopt Windows virtualisation on their networks.
October 11, 2005 11 Oct'05
Microsoft delivers cheaper server virtualisation

Microsoft is simplifying its Windows Server System licensing to make it cheaper for customers to adopt Windows virtualisation on their network.
September 23, 2005 23 Sep'05
Oracle share price falls as new licence sales flatline

Oracle has reported that new licence revenues for its key database and middleware products were almost flat in the last quarter – and immediately suffered a 5% slump in its share price yesterday.
September 19, 2005 19 Sep'05
Users angered by Microsoft push for Software Assurance take-up

Windows Vista Enterprise exclusive to users who sign up to subscription licence model
September 16, 2005 16 Sep'05
Windows Vista Enterprise only available through Software Assurance

Businesses that want the enterprise edition of Microsoft’s forthcoming Windows Vista operating system will have to sign up to the company’s Software Assurance (SA) licensing programme.
September 13, 2005 13 Sep'05
Simplify licensing, IT leaders tell Microsoft

Microsoft should reduce the costs of software licensing, simplify the licensing process and lead the whole industry into a "conflict-free licensing zone", according to the Corporate IT Forum, whose members include senior IT managers in 150 FTSE ...
September 13, 2005 13 Sep'05
Integrity licence tweak for capacity on demand

As part of its virtualisation drive this week, HP is tweaking the licensing of processors on its Integrity server range to allow users to have extra processing capacity as and when they need it.
September 09, 2005 09 Sep'05
On-demand CRM is on the up

Hosted customer relationship management (CRM) is competing with traditional licensing as the most popular delivery method for applications.
September 06, 2005 06 Sep'05
House of Fraser drops Software Assurance for old licensing deal

House of Fraser has dropped Microsoft's Software Assurance programme, which offers software upgrades and discounts on training in return for an annual fee, claiming it is poor value for money.
September 06, 2005 06 Sep'05
UK user groups believe Microsoft has listened

Several major IT user groups have expressed confidence that Microsoft's updated Software Assurance volume licensing model, due to be unveiled on 15 September, will mark a real step forward for corporate users hoping for improved terms and ...
August 10, 2005 10 Aug'05
Open source debate hots up at Linuxworld conference

The debate over the future of open source came to the fore yesterday at the Linuxworld conference in San Francisco, with one Hewlett-Packard executive calling on IBM and Sun Microsystems to abandon their own licences and back the GNU general public ...
August 08, 2005 08 Aug'05
Firms using 'barely half' of their ERP licences

Businesses that have enterprise resource planning applications are using barely half the licences they have paid for, according to analyst group AMR Research.
August 08, 2005 08 Aug'05
Cut Software Assurance costs, users tell Microsoft

Microsoft could face a backlash from users if changes to its Software Assurance licensing scheme, due to be announced next month, do not address cost and value concerns.
August 02, 2005 02 Aug'05
Microsoft cracks down on pirates

People running Windows software will now need to provide a licence key before they can download any free Microsoft software.
July 28, 2005 28 Jul'05
Microsoft signs 100,000 desktop deal with government departments

Microsoft signs 100,000 desktop deal with government departments Microsoft has signed two major licensing agreements with government departments.
July 18, 2005 18 Jul'05
Oracle eases multi-core licensing

Oracle has changed its software licensing policy on multi-core processors to address criticism its existing scheme is too expensive.
July 15, 2005 15 Jul'05
Oracle bends under pressure on software licensing

Oracle has finally changed its software licensing policy on multi-core processors, to address criticism that its existing scheme was too costly.
July 11, 2005 11 Jul'05
Mobile kit complicates licensing

The proliferation of mobile devices is making it harder for companies to stop employees using illegal or counterfeit software, according to a survey of 500 business managers.
July 04, 2005 04 Jul'05
CIOs fail to see benefit of using open source

CIOs fail to see benefit of using open source Open source software was not popular with the IT leaders surveyed by CIOConnect. Despite publicity about lower licensing costs and improved reliability, less than 10% thought the technology was of ...
May 26, 2005 26 May'05
Novell’s losses grow

Novell has posted bigger losses for the second quarter as it saw licence revenues for its software fall.
April 15, 2005 15 Apr'05
AMD ignites licensing touch paper

AMD’s much anticipated launch of its first dual-core Opteron server processor on 21 April has fuelled the debate among software...
April 11, 2005 11 Apr'05
OSI sets new open source licence rules

The Open Source Initiative (OSI) has launched a programme to reduce the growing number of different open source licences in...
April 01, 2005 01 Apr'05
RedHat rises on back of enterprise sales

A big jump in enterprise Linux licences helped increase Red Hat's sales by more than half in the fourth quarter.
February 28, 2005 28 Feb'05
Gartner warns on IBM licence changes

Analyst Gartner has warned users to act in response to changes IBM has made to some of its software licensing and maintenance...
February 17, 2005 17 Feb'05
Tarantella hands out free licences to sysadmins

Tarantella has announced free single-user licences for its Linux-based Secure Global Desktop Enterprise Edition 4, which gives...
November 29, 2004 29 Nov'04
Licence costs could double by 2006

Users planning to purchase servers next year should start negotiating with suppliers now or risk paying increased software...
November 17, 2004 17 Nov'04
Solaris steals Linux's clothes

Sun plans to counter the growing popularity of Linux by releasing Solaris under an open-source licence and adopting a software...
November 15, 2004 15 Nov'04
BPM workflow helps DVLA manage licences

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is deploying Tibco's business process management software to automate the handling of...
November 03, 2004 03 Nov'04
NHS deal with Microsoft to save health service up to £330m

The NHS has announced a new software licensing deal with Microsoft that promises substantial savings and the development of...