Any software vendor that’s been paying attention to its customers in recent months will tell you that software licensing preferences are changing–and quickly.  The past year, in particular, has brought about an appetite for more flexible licensing models that are less user-centric and more usage-centric.  As IT organizations continue to chisel away unnecessary spending and take a more strategic approach to software asset management, they’re increasingly demanding “pay-per-use” (i.e. usage-based licensing) and “pay as you go” (i.e. subscription-based licensing) scenarios that are more directly correlated with the benefits received through the use of any given application. And vendors are listening.  

According to a Computerworld article by Eric Lai, vendors are rapidly adjusting their license offerings to accommodate and take advantage of this shift. The article notes that 43% of vendors have changed or expanded their licensing options to include such approaches as usage-based and subscription-based pricing.  (Subscription pricing, which has long dominated the SaaS market, is now becoming commonplace among on-premise offerings). And, according to IDC, these trends are only expected to accelerate. 

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I just read an utterly scathing column in ComputerWorld in which James Gaskin blasts the BSA for what he claims is a common practice of using “extortion tactics” that are especially punitive to small businesses. In his indictment, Gaskin lists a number of grievances he suggests exemplify the “Big Three” software vendors’ (Microsoft, Adobe, AutoDesk) contempt for small businesses.  Gaskin asserts that the BSA is notorious for “bullying small companies that don’t understand all the rules, lose their paperwork, or have proof stolen by a reward-hungry disgruntled employee.”  

I’ve never been through a software audit myself, so I can’t offer any validation or repudiation of his accusations. As such, my biggest criticism of the article is that Gaskin offers up no examples of or testimony from specific companies or individuals that have actually undergone a BSA audit. His only source on record for the article is a law firm, Scott & Scott LLP, who specializes in defending companies targeted by the BSA—not exactly the most impartial source, if you ask me. 

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Hello, and welcome to the Express Metrix IT Asset Management Blog! 

Over the past few years, as blogs have taken on a greater role in our collective online experience, I’ve noticed a conspicuous absence of blogs devoted to the subject of IT asset management. OK, so IT asset management isn’t quite as riveting as the race for the White House, the latest episode of “Top Chef”, or the new iPhone. But it’s not for lack of recognition that it’s an important business and IT discipline–or, for that matter, a lack of vendors seeking a new vehicle to promote their products! I was absolutely convinced there was a genuine need and appetite for content related to IT asset management, so I mobilized a small team to build a blog.

Then, just over the past couple of months, I began noticing a number of blogs crop up that deal specifically with this subject matter. For example, Martin Thompson, an industry veteran out of the UK, has established a refreshingly objective, vendor-agnostic blog called The ITAM Review, which addresses a variety of topics from product reviews to industry developments to technical advice. Another recent addition to the blogosphere is David Keith’s blog entitled IT Asset and Portfolio Management Insider. Cynthia Farren, an IT consultant, authors the Software Asset Management blog, which offers information focused on the discipline of managing software licenses and negotiating license agreements with software publishers. There are also a number of software vendors in this space with relatively new blogs, including Vector Networks and Centennial Software. So we’re happy to be the newest member of an increasingly vibrant online community around IT asset management.

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