39% of UK IT Managers are risking severe fina...

39% of UK IT Managers are risking severe financial and legal penalties through poor software management

• 39% admit they don’t know what software is on their networks
• 62% still rely on infrequent audits and 51% are still using manual auditing
• 50% recognise the risk of fines from watchdogs and software vendors

19 July 2004 - According to research released today by Centennial Software, the network discovery and asset management company, many UK IT managers are leaving their organisations open to severe financial and legal penalties through inefficient asset management practices. 

Despite 50% of respondents saying that vulnerability to fines was a major risk of poor software license compliance, 51% still rely on manual audits, inevitably resulting in outdated and unreliable information.  The majority of IT Managers (59%) admitted that it was over three months since they had last audited the IT estate and 39% had only a rough idea, at best, of what software was installed on their network.  

Glenn Stephens, Executive VP at Centennial Software, said:  “UK IT managers clearly fear the prospect of having their software audited – and with good reason.  According to a recent Gartner report*, 40% of midsized and large organisations can expect an external licensing audit in the next two years”. (*source: “Why IT Asset Management in Important Now”, 10 June 2004)

In May 2004 alone, the Business Software Alliance fined US organisations nearly $900,000 for under-licensing software.  And FAST (Federation Against Software Theft) is currently prosecuting two UK cases which carry a potential sentence of up to ten years imprisonment plus the closure of the defendants’ business.

“The financial and legal risks associated with under-managing IT are significant,” said Stephens.  “The only way to ensure complete confidence and compliance is by having 20/20 network vision by using network discovery technology.”

Network discovery tools, such as those from Centennial Software, enable managers to make informed decisions about IT and network planning by automatically building a complete view of all hardware, network devices and software deployed across a site, network or entire organization.

The research also reveals further anomalies in regarding the financial implications of asset management; 34% of managers said auditing was too time-consuming, yet 31% of respondents recognised that overspending on unnecessary licenses and services as a key risk of poor asset management. 

Industry figures show that improved control of software licenses can result in up to 30% savings for many organisations.  This is endorsed by Glenn Stephens:  “In the majority of cases, users are able to realise ROI within the first quarter by rationalising license and service agreements and making better use of previously hidden assets.”

~ Ends ~

About Centennial Software / FrontRange Solutions

Centennial Software was acquired by FrontRange Solutions (www.frontrange.com) in April 2008. FrontRange Solutions develops Service Management, IT Infrastructure and Customer Relationship Management solutions that scale with the needs of mid-sized and distributed enterprises. The company – through its FrontRange, HEAT, GoldMine, Enteo and Centennial brands – offers a unique portfolio that has been chosen by more than 150,000 organizations worldwide to help improve the effectiveness and reduce the cost of interacting with external and internal customers.

Part of the FrontRange Solutions Infrastructure Management Group, Centennial Software develops IT Audit & Network inventory, Software Asset Management (SAM) and Endpoint Security Tools Centennial Discovery, License Manager and DeviceWall enable more than 6,000 organizations worldwide to manage their IT assets, license compliance and network security. Learn how full network audit, complete control of software licenses and effective USB security solutions can help drive cost, risk and complexity out of IT operations.

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