Automatic License Updates: Usership and Usability
With the new economy ignited by Industrie 4.0, customers have gained a stronger voice. They are reshaping relations and product designs; they are in control. Which manufacturers will still be holding the reins in tomorrow’s markets? It’s the ones who are first to understand that the product ownership era is coming to an end, to transition from products to services, and to rethink their entire supply chain from a radically new perspective. How does this epochal change affect software licensing?
Just like a product is expected to morph across its lifetime as software is updated and upgraded, there is no license type that can serve every geographical region, every customer’s needs, or every context in the medium to long term. A perpetual license is neither the best way to monetize software nor the kind of personalized approach that customers have come to expect these days. The new business strategy adopted, for instance, by Desoutter Industrial Tools is based not specifically on selling as many licenses as possible right now, but on creating a loyal customer base for the long run. They do so by entitling customers to convert the licenses they have purchased for specific functionalities into new licenses for the features they currently need. ISVs also have the opportunity to mix and match newer licensing models like subscriptions, upgrades, downgrades, maintenance, rental, or pay-per-use licenses.
From a technical point of view, end users also demand the least interaction possible when they opt in for a license update. The license should be enabled transparently in the background when the software is started, without the customer having to take any additional action other than placing the purchase order. Similarly, ISVs can enjoy greater efficiency and productivity when their license management systems are integrated into their ERP or CRM system.
Register for this new masterclass to learn how CodeMeter License Central goes above and beyond:
In this live session, we are going to zero in on the following topics:
- Defining automatic license updates
- Managing license updates in CodeMeter License Central
- Assigning licenses to a CmContainer
- Withdrawing licenses
- Replacing licenses
- Blacklisting licenses from CmContainers automatically or manually
- Single ticket approach
- Rolling out license updates automatically
- With the Software Activation Wizard, with or without a ticket
- With the transparent distribution mode as part of another action
- With an end user action in WebDepot, with or without a ticket
- The most common use cases for automatic license updates
- Subscription, rental, leasing licensing models
- Maintenance contracts
- Change of license
- Licenses for service technicians and partners
- Locking lost licenses or lost CmContainers
- Insolvent customers and cases of fraud