Licensing compliance can be a challenging aspect for a fast growing business. Our team specializes on software audit and continuous monitoring, ensuring that all compliance requirements are met and business has a clear understanding of the situation with software assets.
Software Asset Management (SAM) service from PriorIT provides the following benefits for businesses:
- Ensures licensing and legal compliance
- Minimizes cost of software use
- Monitors and tracks all software changes across the organization
As a business owner, it is critical to understand that negligence with software can have very expensive circumstances – from security breaches and data loss to lawsuits from vendors. Brief SAM assessment will reveal main compliance aspects applicable to your business such as vendors and their licensing policies, acquired hardware and software.
We have obtained Microsoft Software Asset Management certification in 2010, and have completed numerous SAM projects ever since. Our goal is to become a trusted IT advisor, that will provide clear picture of what is going on in your IT infrastructure, what are the main licensing gaps, and what would be the most cost efficient way to bridge them.
Software licensing programs
Currently there are several ways to legally use software, that differ in upfront cost and total cost of ownership (TCO). Here is a breakdown of Microsoft licensing programs, which can be applicable in different scenarios:
- Purchase software, paying full cost upfront.
- Finance the purchase with payments spread over a period of time.
- Lease software with a buyout option at the end of the term.
- Subscribe for cloud-based service.
For purchasing Microsoft offers a few different licensing programs, such as OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer), FPP (Full Packaged Product) and OLP (Open License).
OEM is a software that is purchased pre-installed on the new hardware, such as a computer or a server. The limitation of OEM software is that it is tied to a specific hardware it was pre-installed on, and it cannot be used on any other hardware. Even though it is the cheapest way to purchase software, such limitations should be kept in mind, as they may render this option useless for cases when often hardware replacement is required.
FPP products are sold in retail stores and are usually more expensive than other licensing programs. Not all products are available in this program, and it is not really convenient for business use.
OLP licensing is often the best way to purchase and centrally manage all software products for a company. It is required to sign an agreement with Microsoft, and initial order should consist of at least 5 licenses. This program allows to track all licenses on dedicated client portal, where a customer representative can download software installation packages, license keys etc. For larger volumes different discounts can be provided.
Financing the software allows the company to start legally using the software right away, and split the cost in three annual payments. It is slightly more expensive than upfront purchase with OLP program, but it is very helpful to keep healthy cash flow.
Leasing the software can be a good idea for companies with fluctuating workforce, for example, rapidly growing businesses or those depending on seasonal ups and downs. Annual payments are minimal, but if a company decides to buy out the software at the end of lease term, it will be the most expensive way to obtain software products.
Cloud services became known to general public not too long ago, but now it is the most rapidly growing segment of software business. Most important advantages include ease of management and no need for installation (and maintenance) on a particular computer. It is likely to become dominant way to use software in the nearest future. If the information above looks somewhat confusing, fear not – PriorIT experts are one call away, and we can walk you through the ever growing complexity of software compliance from A to Z.