| | | | Third-party Oracle support: To be or not to be
 Even after the 2008 shutdown of TomorrowNow, we are often asked by company executives about third-party alternatives for Oracle support. While we understand that this is being driven by the need to reduce IT support costs, there are some distinct advantages and disadvantages.
Companies are creating opportunities for themselves with claims of cutting third-party support costs in half. And, since these alternative 3rd party support providers are essentially cutting out the annual support and maintenance costs, it makes sense that they are saving you the cost of year-over-year annual fees. This can translate to millions of dollars. While there are a lot of happy clients out there, enterprise IT organizations need to take into account whether or not it is prudent to completely cut out the annual support and maintenance. | Compliance Validation Best Practices Get it in writing. Get all assumptions clarified and then confirmed in writing. You don't want to assume anything and any discussion or email in which you are getting the best leverage should be mentioned in detail within your agreement. We see a lot of our clients - even the largest Oracle enterprise - treat emails and verbal discussions as legally binding agreements, which is untrue in the case of an Oracle software licensing agreement (or any SLA for that matter). It is not up to the sales person to remember what he/she promised you or what concessions were discussed and agreed upon. It is up to you to remember and make it legally binding.
Never assume a License Usage Right. If you think that your Oracle license allows you specific actions or specific functions, you need to check your SLA. For example, you purchased eBusiness Suite and assumed that the collections module was included in the accounts receivable functionality (which is reasonable). The collections module is actually a separate module and, therefore, a separate cost.
Never assume that the vendor doesn't know. We have many companies come to us for the first time and they tell us about a yet-to-be disclosed data warehouse launch, a merger or company acquisition, layoffs, or other major corporate changes. Often, the company believes that Oracle doesn't know about it and they want to know what their SLA options are. However, don't be too sure of that. With larger companies, it's not too hard to find information about the organization including the inner workings and operations.
With that said, you also shouldn't assume that Oracle knows about your business or is an expert in your field. The onus is still on you to be knowledgeable about your company, the industry and the world you live in. | | | | | 
Our events are now archived! Request any event you'd like to view. How to Avoid a Costly Audit Open Q&A: Oracle Licensing Open Q&A: Microsoft Licensing Virtualization & Oracle Licensing E-Discovery, Retention & Records Management Identity Management Best Practices: Practical Advice for Oracle Users ************************************
| | About Miro Consulting, Inc. Miro Consulting helps companies analyze and negotiate enterprise software contracts - specifically Oracle and Microsoft licensing. In addition, the company offers software asset management consultation services and the building of software asset management offices within enterprises. Since 2000, the NJ-based company has negotiated over $1 billion in software licensing transactions. Miro has helped 400+ clients throughout North America and worldwide to optimize their total cost of ownership (TCO).
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