software packaging

I was emailing back and forth with a colleague of mine the other day about whom, within the ISVs business stands to gain the most from offering trial versions of their software. Well, after much discussion, here’re the cliff notes… Read More

Frequently I have the opportunity to discuss “software licensing costs” with ISV’s and device manufacturers in our industry. I always find it to be an intriguing discussion, and almost universally it seems that these companies view licensing as a necessary evil, not as an investment (let alone a strategic investment!). While there are multiple reasons why this could be (think of purchasing organizations and how they are measured), part of the equation undoubtedly has to do with the lack of concrete ROI metrics that are available around this technology, and the management of licenses and entitlements.

How do you know how much you are losing? How much is due to piracy? How much is due to unintentional piracy by organizations that want to be compliant, but aren’t due to a lack of enforcement? All of these metrics seem to be based in the psychology of perceived loss, as opposed to perceived opportunity. Read More