Today, organisations have numerous options when it comes to purchasing software for their business. With many software vendors crossing the spectrum of license metrics in order to appeal to a wider array of customers with varying needs, perpetual software licensing is no longer the only option in the market. Where once, companies would have to pay the full cost of software up-front, before any value had been derived, a new era of software licensing has arrived offering great choice and flexibility. The rise of models such as subscription and usage-based licensing means that companies don’t have to take a leap of faith in their software buying, but they do need to deal with new levels of complexity.

With the freedom organisations have in purchasing software, also comes special responsibility. Complexity is a consequence of having a software “estate” comprised of many different software applications using a variety of software licensing models, some of which are outlined below:

* Subscription Licensing: Buyers can rent their software over a contract period, rather than purchasing the license outright. Offerings, such as salesforce.com, are examples of hosted, or Software as a Service (SaaS)-based software to which one can subscribe. One can also purchase on-premise software using a subscription model.

SOURCE: abc.net.au