Software Asset Management (SAM) Blog

Microsoft has joined forces with the Linux Foundation to draft a shared letter to the American Law Institute (ALI) on the subject of software licensing laws.

Both software providers are concerned that ALI is considering a guideline that would make the assumption that all software should be shipped with no defects, and that this should be considered a de facto warranty.

TYhe ALI is made up of members from the American legal establishment, which draws up guidelines for judges that explain how the law should be applied in legal cases. This week the group meets to finalise the Principles of the Law of Software Contracts.

The exchequer secretary to the Treasury, Angela Eagle has confirmed that the UK Government and Microsoft have reached agreement over a new software licensing deal. The Office of Governement Commerce (OGC) claims the new deal will save the Government some £75 million (us $114 million) over the next five years.

While the details of the deal are not clear, it is reported that the Government will be able to re-use old licenses and that license terms have been agreed that allow departments to only pay for those components of Microsoft’s usual software bundles that they actually intend to use.

The new five-year deal replaces the previous three-year agreement - the longer time-frame is said to better suit Government buying cycles.

Plans by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) in the UK to reuse software licenses by passing them on to other departments have generated an icy response from companies responsible for delivering Software Asset Management (SAM) services. While SAM evangelists widely endorse the idea of reusing software licensing to minimize ongoing costs, there is a large question mark over the practicality (and legality) of such a scheme were it to be run on a Government-wide basis.

With millions of licenses in use across the British Government, this would potentially be the largest software license management exercise undertaken, and many in the industry doubt the Government has the necessary centralised skills. Moreover, there is a question as to whether Government departments should be allowed to transfer licenses freely - an option that is not available to private sector organizations.

According to reports, currently talks between the UK Government and Microsoft have overrun the end of the previous agreement by some 18 months.

As of December 9, 2008, the VLSC licensing dashboard includes a notification area for site alerts, a Volume Licensing news and announcements section and links to key tasks.

Accessing VLSC

Designed for midsize and enterprise businesses that accessed their Microsoft License Statements through Microsoft Volume License Services (MVLS) and Microsoft eOpen websites, VLSC provides a simpler interface and more robust features to help reduce time spent on licensing-related administrative tasks.

VLSC offers key benefits for licensed software management: Licensing information, composed of the Licensing Summary and the Relationship Summary.

Licensing Summary

You can use VLSC to view current and past Microsoft License Statements across programs and agreements—all in simple format. 

Volume License Relationship Summary

VLSC includes a report that shows all Volume Licensing agreements associated to a user’s profile.

Downloads
Accelerated download speeds and a simple, secure user interface make it easy and safe for you to use VLSC to find the right product, based on your licensing entitlements.

Product Keys 
 
VLSC makes it easy for you to request product keys for the Windows Vista operating system, enables retrieval of volume license keys for all Microsoft licensed products, and provides access to technical support.